Friday 15th September 2017

At $33bn, External Reserves Hit 31-month High, Oil Rebounds to Five-month High Chika Amanze-Nwachuku, Ndubuisi Francis, Ejiofor Alike and Obinna Chima Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves have risen to a 31-month high of $33 billion, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) disclosed yesterday.

It was also positive news for Nigeria from the oil

markets where crude prices touched a five-month high, with Brent, the benchmark crude, up one per cent at $55.72 a barrel, after a session high of $55.99, its highest since April 13.

CBN spokesman Mr. Isaac

Okoroafor spoke on the rise in foreign reserves on the sidelines of a seminar for finance correspondents and business editors in Awka, Anambra State yesterday.

The accretion in reserves, derived mainly from the

proceeds of crude oil earnings, represents an increase by $7 billion, compared with the $26 billion at the end of the year.

The Nigerian economy, which recently exited from a debilitating recession,

with data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showing that the economy expanded by 0.55 per cent in the second quarter (Q2) of 2017, was driven mainly by the performance of the oil and three other sectors.

Resident Doctors Suspend Strike for Two Weeks… Page 50

In the second quarter, the oil sector grew significantly by 17.04 percentage points from -15.40 per cent recorded in Q1 2017 to 1.64 per cent, reflecting the relative peace in the Niger Delta, increased oil output from the region and increase in oil prices.

Continued on page 12

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Soldiers to Withdraw from Abia Streets Today, Says Ikpeazu, Army Differs Military to probe rights abuses, curfew imposed on Jos Troops fail to arrest Kanu after gunfire, whereabouts unknown Six IPOB members killed, 15 arrested as suspects raze police station Osinbajo, IG meet, police to be deployed nationwide Kanu’s activities could lead to war, MASSOB leader warns Omololu Ogunmade, Paul Obi in Abuja, Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia, Seriki Adinoyi in Jos andChristopher Isiguzo inEnugu There was confusion yesterday when the Abia State governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu announced that soldiers would withdraw from the streets of the capital city of Umuahia and Aba, the

See more stories on pages 53 – 54 commercial nerve centre of the state by today, but was contradicted by the army command in Abuja, which said his statement was not true.

Continued on page 12

APC: Aisha Alhassan Has Apologised for Comment on Buhari But she’s entitled to her opinion, choice Restructuring c’ttee: We won’t foreclose on referendum Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday met with the Minister of Women Affairs, Hajia Aisha Alhassan for over two hours, during which the party said that she apologised to its

over her recent declaration of support for former VicePresident Atiku Abubakar should he decide to contest the 2019 presidential election over her boss, President Muhammadu Buhari.

Continued on page 12

L-R: Guest speaker, Chief Phillip Asiodu; former Commonwealth Secretary General and chairman of the occasion, Chief Emeka Anyaoku; and Chairman, Board of Trustees, Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, Prof. Umaru Shehu, during the Hallmarks of Labour Foundation's reunion symposium, held in Lagos… yesterday

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PAGE TWELVE SOLDIERS TO WITHDRAW FROM ABIA STREETS TODAY, SAYS IKPEAZU, ARMY DIFFERS In a show of force called Operation Python Dance II, the Nigerian Army had deployed soldiers in Abia State, the home state of IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, whose group has been agitating for the break up of Nigeria and the realisation of the Republic of Biafra.

Since the deployment of forces, deadly clashes have been recorded between the military and IPOB members in Abia and neighbouring Rivers State, with rising casualties recorded by members of the separatist group.

But even as Ikpeazu moved to restore some semblance of order in his state, tensions boiled over in Plateau State, where rumours that the Hausa community in Jos, the state

capital, were planning a reprisal attack against Igbos nearly crippled commercial activities throughout yesterday, forcing the state governor Simon Lalong to imposed an indefinite dusk to dawn on the Jos/Bukuru metropolis.

Also, with the palpable tension felt nationwide, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo promptly held a closed-door meeting with the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, in Abuja yesterday where it was agreed that policemen should be deployed across the country to prevent outbreaks of violence in other states of the federation.

Speaking on the withdrawal of troops from Abia at a press conference held at the

government house Umuahia, Ikpeazu said the security situation “has become of great concern to both the government and the citizenry of the state�. “After several interventions, I want to inform you that by tomorrow morning (Friday), there will be withdrawal of solders from the streets at Aba and Umuahia, apart from the pre-existing military checkpoints at various locations in the state,� he added.

Ikpeazu made the announcement after a meeting with leaders of market associations in the state as well as stakeholders from Umuahia North, Umuahia South, Osisioma, Aba North and Aba South Local Government Areas,

which are all at the epicenter of the mounting security crisis in the state.

The embattled Abia governor warned that despite the expected withdrawal of troops, the state government would not tolerate agitators and protesters taking over the streets for any reason what so ever.

He said he would be meeting the President Mohamaudu Buhari to discuss possible ways of relaxing the military exercise in the state.

Ikpeazu also condemned the attacks on police stations and military posts in Aba and Umuahia, adding: “We hereby warn that we will no longer tolerate that and all other acts that are capable of causing

insecurity in the state.� “We have also observed illegal acts of throwing petrol bombs and setting up of bonfires to obstruct free movement along some roads by suspected miscreants and wish to warn that such acts should stop forthwith. “To mischief makers who want to use Abia as their base, let me announce to you that henceforth, Abia will be too hot for you to carry out your wicked acts, as the government will work with the security agencies to ensure the protection of lives and property in the state without fear or favor. There will be no hiding place for you,� he asserted.

The governor disclosed that the security forces foiled

attempts by hoodlums to burn the Ariaria International market at midnight on Wednesday, noting that their aim was to take advantage of the situation to cripple the economy of the state and cause widespread suffering.

He also said that attempts made to burn the police station at Ariaria were equally scuttled. “My fellow Abians, it is in the interest of all our citizens and residents for full and total peace and security to return to our state immediately. No meaningful progress can be made in an atmosphere of violence and anarchy,� he said.

On the dusk to dawn curfew Continued on page 49

AT $33BN, EXTERNAL RESERVES HIT 31-MONTH HIGH, OIL REBOUNDS TO FIVE-MONTH HIGH In the foreign exchanges market, however, the naira closed at N360.5 to the dollar on the NAFEX window yesterday, but fell to N367 to the dollar on the parallel market.

The CBN on Monday had intervened with $250 million in the interbank forex market.

Okorafor said with the sustained interventions, the central bank has been able to push forex demand away from the parallel market into the formal regulated market.

According to him, CBN had taken measures to check the activities of speculators and shield the currency from attacks, while also maintaining the value of the naira.

Okorafor maintained that authorised dealers had enough funds to meet the forex needs of customers and urged all to adhere to the extant guidelines on the sale of forex in the Nigerian forex market.

He advised those in genuine need of forex to continue to approach their respective banks for purchase, adding that the CBN remained optimistic that the Nigerian currency will fare strongly against other convertible currencies.

On the convergence target of the Bank, he said the goal would be attained if all stakeholders played by the rules.

On the international oil

markets, crude oil prices rose yesterday, with the global benchmark crude, Brent, touching a five-month high, a day the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicated that the oil market would continue to tighten as fuel demand increases.

Brent crude was up one per cent at $55.72 a barrel, after a session high of $55.99, its highest since April 13, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate was up 1.7 per cent at $50.14 per barrel, its first time to cross the $50 mark since August.

WTI touched $50.50, its highest since May 25, and surpassed its 200-day moving average.

Reuters reported that Brent

has climbed more than $10 a barrel in three months and is close to where it began this year.

On Wednesday, the IEA raised its estimate of 2017 world oil demand growth to 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) from 1.5 million bpd.

The agency said a global oil glut was shrinking thanks to strong European and U.S. demand, as well as production declines in OPEC and nonOPEC countries.

Global oil demand grew “very strongly� year-on-year in the second quarter this year, which prompted the IEA to revise up its growth estimate to 1.6 million bpd for this year.

This is the second consecutive

month in which the agency has lifted its demand growth forecast, after it revised up the growth estimate to 1.5 million bpd in August.

Although Hurricanes Harvey and Irma were expected to slow U.S. oil demand growth in the third quarter this year, “OECD demand growth continues to be stronger than expected, particularly in Europe and the U.S.,� the IEA said.

Also supporting oil prices, was the fact that OPEC production dropped in August for the first time in five months, following production disruptions in Libya and other OPEC members producing less crude.

OPEC members bound by

the pact achieved an 82 per cent compliance rate in August, higher than the 75 per cent in July.

IEA noted that year-to-date, compliance within OPEC stands at 86 per cent.

OPEC and other producers including Russia had agreed to reduce crude output to support prices.

This week’s gains have come despite data showing a big build up in U.S. crude inventories after Hurricane Harvey.

Data from the Energy Information Administration showed a build up in U.S. crude inventories last week of 5.9 million barrels, exceeding expectations.

segments of the society, we cannot under any circumstance foreclose dialogue and public consultations to understand the issues and as a basis of intervention and that is exactly what the party is doing. “Whether we ought to have done it earlier than now or not is open to debate. But the principles of asking the public what do you think? What is you view, is not something we should shout down in any democracy and coming from a political party, it is something that we should encourage and promote,� he said.

On whether the committee’s terms of reference will not clash with the ongoing constitution amendment process in the National Assembly, Adetumbi said: “A conflict with the legislature won’t arise, because this exercise is not trying to make laws but to understand what the popular demands of the people are which the party can use to advocate within its membership in the National Assembly for necessary constitutional amendments.�

He said the APC, as a national political party, is an institution that has a role and is also a stakeholder in making its own contributions.

He explained that the committee had sent out public announcements calling for memoranda and for members of the public to meet it at designated venues without any discrimination. “It is about harvesting the opinions of the ordinary people that we want to talk to in order to form an opinion because no political party can exist just by itself but through the people.

“So it is an open invitation to all Nigerians to attend and make their views and opinions count,� he said.

When asked whether the committee’s work and that of the Northern governors’ committee on restructuring would not clash or seen as duplicating the same exercise, he said: “The Northern governors are also stakeholders in the project, Nigeria, and they have every right to contribute to the future of Nigeria.�

Also speaking, the Director General of the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF), Salihu Lukeman said: “I don’t think it’s a matter of monopoly and I think that is the attitude of the APC, every opinion is welcome and the committee will do its work and the challenge now is for all of us to be positive because what we are looking for is a solution.�

APC: AISHA ALHASSAN HAS APOLOGISED FOR COMMENT ON BUHARI However, the party acknowledged that she was entitled to her opinion and her choice.

Alhassan refreshingly backed Atiku over Buhari during a Sallah visit to the former’s residence and doubled down on her stance in a subsequent interview with the BBC. Though there was no official reaction from the APC or presidency, several Buhari acolytes fell over themselves to condemn her decision not to support the president, with some even calling for her sack from the cabinet.

Alhassan, who arrived the APC national secretariat at about 2 pm yesterday, went straight to the office of the National Chairman Chief John Odigie Oyegun where she held discussions with the leadership.

Addressing journalists after the meeting with the minister, the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi said she accepted her error and apologised. “Now, having offered her explanation, we acknowledged that as a member of this party, she is entitled to her opinion and entitled to her choice. “However, as a senior member of this party, her statements represent an act of indiscretion because with the kind of position she occupies, even within the party, she is a party leader in her own right, so what she said was not what she was supposed to say at the time that she said it. “She ought to have exercised greater judgment than she did and she acknowledged that yes, may be the timing was wrong and she apologised, saying

that ‘if she had put the party in any difficult position, she apologises’,� he said.

Abdulahi said the party deliberately did not react formally to the report of Alhassan’s outburst because it wanted to hear her out. “We had wanted to have an opportunity to hear from the minister on why she acted in the manner that she did. “As a senior member of this party and the administration, her comment amounted to act of indiscretion,� he said.

He said the party’s leadership, after hearing from her, cautioned her for not exercising discretion in the manner she presented the matter.

Surprisingly, the embattled minister came out of the closed door meeting smiling as she made her way to her brown coloured Mercedes SUV. When asked about her mission to the secretariat, Alhassan said she would leave the spokesman to speak to the reporters who spoke to her.

Speaking shortly after he escorted the minister to her waiting car, Abdullahi confirmed that the party invited her for discussions.

On whether the party asked her to resign from the cabinet, Abdulahi said: “No, that did not come up. What we just said was that we understand the context in which she said what she said, but it was an act of indiscretion for someone occupying the position she is occupying in the party to make that kind of statement.�

The minister’s meeting with the APC leadership was seen as an attempt by the party to arrest a possible rupture in the

unity and solidarity of the ruling party ahead of the 2019.

Meanwhile, the party’s committee on restructuring has said it would not shut out demands for a referendum if a majority of Nigerians insist on it.

At the same time, the committee, which is saddled with the task of articulating the party’s position on the clamour for the restructuring of the federation, said nothing was considered a no-go area in the ongoing dialogue and public consultations being spearheaded by the party.

Addressing journalists yesterday in Abuja, the Secretary of the APC Committee on True Federalism, Senator Olabunmi Adetumbi said the panel, in addition to engaging directly with Nigerians across the country, would use the reports of conferences held in 2005 and 2014 as reference materials.

He assured that the committee will try as much as possible to be fair and just in its report, which will be submitted to the party’s leadership for onward presentation to government.

On whether the party was foreclosing discussions on the issue of a referendum by conducting its public hearing on restructuring, Adetumbi said: “Well, if this comes out as part of the responses from our public consultations, it will surely be reported. “You know I said at the beginning that this is a subject on which the committee itself has no opinion, we are not canvassing anything as a committee, we are interested in harvesting opinions in all areas, particularly on what the ordinary people are saying

concerning this issue,� he said.

Adetumbi said the committee had marshaled out a 12-point agenda that took care of all the various issues being canvassed for by agitators for the restructuring in the country.

The 12 issues include creation of states, derivation issues, what percentage will be desirable, devolution of powers and reforming the federating units, and fiscal policy reforms.

Others include what form of government is desirable, independent candidacy, land tenure system and whether it should remain part of the constitution or not.

He also went on to list local government autonomy, rotational presidency, resource control and what type of legislature Nigeria needs, as part of the issues for consultations.

On whether the party will not be going against Buhari’s position that the agitation for restructuring could only be addressed by the National Assembly and National Council of State, Adetumbi said: “I don’t think that is the case. If he says the National Assembly has the powers to take this decision, I think he even opened up the frontiers. “We have representatives in the National Assembly and if today there is a position in the party, the party can call its members in the parliament and direct them to act accordingly and constituents can also direct their representatives as well. “There is nothing foreclosed, I think I will take the statement of President Buhari as an acknowledgement that the issue is open to debate. As we interface with various

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COMMENT

Editor, Editorial Page PETER ISHAKA Email peter.ishaka@thisdaylive.com

AFRICAN DIASPORA DIPLOMACY AND HURRICANE IRMA The continent must do more for its kin in the diaspora, writes Okello Oculi

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elevision pictures taken from the air and at ground level showed horrendous devastation to homes and community institutions inflicted by hurricane Irma.

The category five hurricane started its safari of winds travelling at 175 miles per hour from Anguilla and Barbuda islands. By the time it broke power lines, roofs and snapped trees across the tip of Cuba, it was roaring at 160 miles per hour. A CNN reporter noted that it was wide enough to cover the whole of Florida State.

The prime minister of Barbuda, Gaston Browne, reported that 50% of its population of 1,500 had lost their homes; while 90% of buildings ‘’had been destroyed’’. Roads and communication systems were ‘’ravaged’’; and the cost of damage was huge.

Antigua ‘’escaped major damage’’. British and American Virgin Islands had five and four deaths, respectively.

Unlike Cuba which moved one million Cubans and 10,000 foreign tourists away from the path of Hurricane Irma, the officials in Haiti admitted not ‘’being prepared’’ ahead and were reportedly lucky to escape with some damage to roofs and farms . They had not evacuated people as a precaution. Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago were spared this horror of nature at a feast of rage. With its omelette-shaped face: not blessed with a mountain range for a pimple, tiny Barbados might have lost grass and crickets on her soil if Irma had done her cruel dance of a witch across the island country.

It is appalling that even in solidarity of danger from nature’s habit of enraging waters and winds of the Caribbean, the Netherlands, Britain, France and the United States offered help only to islands they occupy. The Turks and Calcos with a population of 35,000 will share, with Anguilla, a British ‘’relief fund’’ of 42 million pounds sterling. St Martins, an island parcelled by Holland and France, had a French minister fly over with relief resources. The French side with low level of investment from Paris, had 95 per cent of their rickety buildings destroyed. The American government evacuated 860 Americans trapped on the island. Television pictures showed the sturdy red-roofed buildings on the Dutch sector standing firm. Dutch marines were rushed over to prevent further looting from the poor French sector.

On the Virgin Islands the American used ‘’amphibious assault USS Wasp’’ to take patients in hospitals in St Thomas Island to safety in Puerto Rico and St Croix. Meanwhile, a Norwegian tourist ship evacuated 2,000 tourists from St. Thomas, a nightmare that is bound to reduce the number of northern Europeans travelling to the tropical blessings of the Caribbean, thereby weakening the region’s economic growth.

Victims of African descent remain relatively invisible on the African continent; while the Euro-American media resolutely reports the continent to them as totally horrible. When Bob Marley sang to Jamaicans the words: ‘’WE AFRICANS’’ will fight and liberate Zimbabwe, he was using a huge axe in his voice to cut through centuries of propaganda that made his people and other Caribbean blacks ashamed to have Africa in their blood and identity.

IT IS APPALLING THAT EVEN IN SOLIDARITY OF DANGER FROM NATURE’S HABIT OF ENRAGING WATERS AND WINDS OF THE CARIBBEAN, THE NETHERLANDS, BRITAIN, FRANCE AND THE UNITED STATES OFFERED HELP ONLY TO ISLANDS THEY OCCUPY

The GLEANER newspaper brazenly supported European immigrants all across Southern Africa, especially Ian Smith and John Vorster as champions of oppression over Africans. When Prime Minister Michael Manley invited liberation warriors like Samora Machel of Mozambique and Oliver Tambo of South Africa to stir up minds of the county’s 95 per cent Afro-Jamaicans, the paper’s cultists were livid with rage and panic.

In 1968 the Guyanese historian Walter Rodney was deported from Jamaica for using street corners in Kingston, Jamaica’s capital, to tell stories about West African kingdoms of Oyo, Benin, Songhai, Ghana and Zimbabwe, etc. Stories about ancient universities in Timbuktu and Alexandria; and that Ethiopia developed a unique alphabet that is still in use in the 20th Century were considered dangerous’’; attracting enthusiastic crowds. He lit pure fright in souls of ancestors of slave owners. The government deported Walter Rodney. He ended up in Tanzania after Fidel Castro urged him to write a book that tells contours of history from an African revolutionary mountain top Walter Rodney’s taking Africa to the Caribbean has not been replicated by African scholars bringing knowledge about the Caribbean to Africans; including school children. Nollyhood is following Rodney’s example. Miriam Makeba sang her ‘’CLIK SONG’’ and Robert Serumaga took a drama ‘’RENGA MOI’’ to Jamaica. The print media; radio reports and television documentaries that bring Afro- Caribbean, Afro-Brazil and Afro-Peru in the far west are severely malnourished. ‘’Hurricane Andrew’ struck the Caribbean in 1992; destroying property worth $47 million, killing 61 persons. ‘’Hurricane Sandy’’ in 2012 destroyed property worth $689 million, and left 159 dead victims. Afro-Caribbean portions of that collective pain remain unreported by the African media and scholars. This silence cripples the possibility of an aroused public all across Africa pushing their governments and Euro-Americans to offer support for reconstructing livelihoods.

A team of historians at Kings College London have dug up data about thousands of British businesses, institutions and families who claimed REPARATIONS for slaves freed from working on their sugar plantations in the Caribbean. From Denmark, Sweden to Holland and Britain economies were built by slaves who produced sugar on these islands. The slaves are still owed their Reparations. At times of turbulent anguish like this, Hurricane Irma may be the angry voices of all those Africans who perished on slave ships and were thrown into the Atlantic Ocean: rising to demand their due. African diplomacy must carry their case to treasuries of their Euro-American debtors.

The human development of these peoples is also critical. Cuba has offered free education up to university level to descendants of slaves. African diplomacy must export this example across the Americas from Brazil to Peru. As Samora Machel still says from ‘’After-Africa’’: Aluta Continua/ the struggle for their development must continue.

Prof. Oculi is a member of THISDAY Editorial Board

STILL HIGH ON HATRED

Samuel Orovwuje canvasses the need for restructuring, but no to hate speech ‘Those who governed well did not arm, those who were armed well did not set up battle lines, those who set up battle lines well did not ďŹ ght, those who fought well did not lose, and those who lost well did not perish’ – Zhuge Liang, 3d century.

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t was the legendary essayist CP Scott who once wrote that ‘Comment is free, but facts are sacred’. This statement has endured over the years as the strategic point of reference for free speech and indeed free press in a democracy and it will continue to underscore the way individuals and political leaders conduct themselves in the public arena.

However, recent hate speeches, messages and comments coming from the perfidious and distressed leaders of political parties, pseudo – intellectual analysts, ethnic extremists and the media is disquieting and awkward at this time of our nation-building efforts.

Today, the traditional and social media is being used by mischief-makers, self - conceited individuals and ethnic organisations across the political divide to threaten and taunt us with footage of their most horrendous and atrocious acts of communication barbarity and hateful messages. Nevertheless, in my view, the most difficult new element is the attraction that a tiny but relevant majority of Nigerians have seen this hate speech to the point that they are ready to internalise the messages as true and sacrosanct.

Therefore, it will require a much more difficult and long-term effort to win back the hearts and minds of people that today seek to destroy the society because of their selfish desires and equally worrisome, is the government disregard

for structured national debates and dialogue to unveil strategy and action plans to resolving the knotty issues of fiscal federalism, constitutional reforms, justice and transparency, which are the hallmarks of sustainable democracy.

This article draws attention to a few of the complex interrelated issues of hate speech and propaganda rather than the fundamental issues of nation-building and the uncensored social media rape on our collective consciousness as people and a nation. The challenges ahead in my view are undeniably serious for our democratic enterprise and the likely fall-out of uncontrollable hostility cannot be ruled out and as a people we must be vigilant.

For the avoidance of doubt, hate speech is speech, which attacks a person or group based on label, ethnicity, gender or religious persuasion.

It can be propagated through spoken words, gesture or conduct, writing, or display, which is forbidden in many countries because it incites violence or prejudice against a group or individual based on their membership of the group.

While there is unprecedented interest in the devolution of power, fiscal federalism and restructuring and the fundamental rights of every Nigerian to defend their democratic principles and values as well as the expressions of solidarity for a better country but we should walk and speak cautiously and avoid the bullish media manipulations and the outward show of shame that has characterised the conversations for true federalism so far.

Most nerve-racking of all in my view is the increasing socio-political affectation from the various ethnic groups and the untamed false-

hood resonating from press releases, interviews, new conferences and indeed the town hall meetings by their narrow-minded leaders and obscure supporters predict trouble for the nation.

Sadly, content analysis of the Nigerian media particularly newspapers could easily leave one with the impression of extreme anxiety by our leaders and the political culture of improbability that is evolving and the half-hearted speeches of a do or die restructuring that is spreading like harmattan fire and it is likely to consume us as a nation if self-regulation is not brought to bear in our national dialogue and conversations.

Therefore, going forward, we must draw insights and lessons from other jurisdiction like Ethiopia. It is instructive to note that in 1996, the 14 historical provinces of Ethiopia were dissolved and nine autonomous regions and two chartered cities, Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa, were created to replace them. Six of these regions are inhabited almost entirely by a single ethnic group each, with the three remaining regions more ethnically diverse. While the federal authorities deal with issues of national concern, including economic and social development, national standards and policy criteria for health and education, defence, federal police, foreign policy, foreign commerce, and immigration. Therefore, the renewed calls of restructuring of the Nigeria state is a welcome development but a workable document, must be brought to the table and each group canvasses critical positions for the creation of autonomous regions in line with resource endowment and homogenous ethnic group through referendum, which is not in the 1999 Constitution.

Disappointedly, the leadership at all levels in my view has not set the moral, ethical, social,

motivational climate in their narratives and blueprint to earn the untainted trust of the average Nigerian. What is more is that their actions and inactions do not reflect the moral and reputational compass that we required as a people to retool this great nation.

Besides the quality of message, resources and presentation skills of what constitute the critical milestone for nation-building are totally absent from their body language and utterances.

Reasonably, there are institutional frameworks and conference reports irrespective of the conveners that address the core issues of our nationhood. Therefore, it is expedient that we adopt citizens’ diplomacy to lobby and take steps as pressure groups through the National Assembly to do needful.

Pointedly, one of the damaging impacts of hate speech on good governance will be the erosion of social and moral fabric of the Nigerian society which will weaken institutions, undermine leadership competency, accommodation of alternative views, diversity of opinions and more importantly, mediocrity is sacrificed at the negative altar of representation by constituent parts which has been one of the bane of nationbuilding efforts in Nigeria.

All things considered, the radicalisation of the traditional and social media space and the complex phenomenon of Nigerian embracing subtle but radical ideology of ethnicity and hate, which are very disturbing trends must be checked by deliberate and a sustained national conversations that put the nation above all interest. And the time is now!

Orovwuje is founder Humanitarian Care for Displaced Persons, Lagos

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EDITORIAL STATES AND THE UBEC FUND The states may do well to access to the idle funds

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n a bid to help the Nigerian child access good education, especially at the foundation level, the federal government established an intervention body, the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC). Its mandate is to administer a fund to all the 36 states of the federation as part of measures to standardise primary education. But “the matching grant� has more or less compelled many states to stay away from accessing the grant, explained a frustrated Dr. Hamid Bobboyi, UBEC Executive Secretary.

As things stand, the authorities in many of the states have chosen to imperil the future of our children. They are more or less indifferent to the fund, simply because they have deliberately refused to adhere to the simple rules for accessing the grants that has accumulated to the tune of N71 billion.

According to UBEC, while many of the northern states were paying the counterpart fund and accessing the facility, the southeast and southwest states have basically indulged in the act of self-harm.

THE STATES NEED TO HAVE Particularly notorious, going by UBEC A RETHINK AND SHOW data, are Ondo State MORE COMMITMENT TO which has failed PRIMARY EDUCATION to access matching

BY TAKING URGENT funds worth N4.6 CONCRETE STEPS TO billion and Enugu ACCESS THE UBEC FUND State which has N4.2 IN THE INTEREST OF THE billion idling away.

Oyo, Ogun and NIGERIAN CHILD Ebonyi States have N3.6 billion each while Abia and Bayelsa States have N2.67 and N2.65 billion lying waste respectively.

The UBEC fund is an annual grant by the federal government to help the states upgrade their primary education facilities in order to provide a good education for the nation’s children. To access the fund, state governments are required to match the federal government’s grant. But many the states have ignored this facility even as children studied under very deplorable conditions, including having lessons under trees and dilapidated classrooms while the

Letters to the Editor

quality of teachers remain suspect in many cases.

More annoying is the dishonesty of some states that have gone ahead to divert their allocations.

UBEC alleged a while ago that ďŹ ve states were involved in illegal withdrawal of counterpart fund after the federal government had released the matching grant to them. This is to say the least criminal.

Indeed, in 2014, the governors made spirited efforts to amend Sections 9 (b) and 11(2) of the UBEC Act that spell out criteria for entitlement to the funds. SpeciďŹ cally, the governors wanted to collect the intervention fund without providing the necessary counterpart funding, which is needed to demonstrate their seriousness. The Goodluck Jonathan administration resisted the amendment because of the poor handling of the funds by most state governments, which reinforced the need for strict monitoring of its disbursement and utilisation.

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n these lean times, it is unfortunate that many state governors have not realised the importance of the facility intended to secure a solid foundation for the future of their children.

Indeed, records abound of reckless and frivolous expenditures by the states, despite the difďŹ culties in meeting their basic responsibilities, even in the primary education sector.

The states need to have a rethink and show more commitment to primary education by taking urgent concrete steps to access the UBEC fund in the interest of the Nigerian child. As the Minister of State for Education, Prof. Anthony Anwukah, has said, the refusal, and or inability of states to access their share of the UBEC fund is strangulating the development of basic education nationwide. In other words, Nigerian children are bearing the brunt of their inaction.

We, therefore urge the governors to oblige UBEC by paying up their counterpart fund. Basic education is too important to be neglected. We cannot afford to imperil the nation’s future. It is noteworthy that once the foundation is faulty, whatever we build on it would be permanently defective.

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to speciďŹ c publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

ANDY UBA AND ANAMBRA GOVERNORSHIP PRIMARIES

M

y attention has been drawn to a petition written by Senator Andy Uba, addressed to the Anambra State Governorship primaries appeal committee of the All Progressives Congress.

I had earlier expressed disbelief when saharareporters made a publication, accusing Senator Uba of putting pressure on members of the committee to annul the primary election.

I had doubted the authenticity of the report, due to the way Senator Uba commended the entire process while voting was ongoing with all assurance that he was going to emerge victorious.

Having seen the petition, I must say that I am unimpressed that our distinguished senator would descend to this level to tarnish an exercise that was painstakingly organised by His Excellency, Governor Kassim Shettima-led electoral panel, adjudged to be the best so far conducted.

In the petition, Senator Uba accused Dr. Tony Nwoye of bringing thugs/NANS members into the accreditation venue to chase away delegates. This is not true as the accreditation was conducted peacefully. Delegates were identified through the following means- permanent voter card (PVC), National ID card, drivers’ licence or International passport. They also came with their party membership slip with photograph issued to

them by the party during registration.

The party had already made the delegates list available to all aspirants, two weeks before the primaries. With the delegates known, there was little room for manipulation.

The Nigerian Police Force led by Anambra State Police Commissioner Umar Garba, the Department of State Services and other security agencies provided adequate security at the accreditation venue, making it nearly impossible for the venue to be infiltrated by thugs. Our dear Senator Uba even attested to this during his interview with pressmen at the accreditation venue. The allegation that delegates were swapped is simply laughable. After accreditation, delegates were conveyed to the voting centre on marked buses with full police escort. There was no room for any manoeuvre as the delegates had no physical contacts with outsiders.

The road leading to the voting venue was not even accessible to commuters and other road users, as it was cordoned off by security agencies, making it impossible for any non-accredited person to gain entrance to the venue.

Most importantly, during voting proper, once a local government is called, the various ward chairmen are called to vote first, then line up in front of the hall to identify delegates from their ward who then proceed to cast votes. The allegation of presence of thugs at the venue is untrue, except if Senator Uba is now referring to genuine APC members as thugs simply

because they did not vote for him.

Senator Uba also alleged that some delegates have gone to court to depose affidavits on what transpired. The party should note that this is their usual tactics of scuttling elections once it doesn’t go their way. It is a Peoples Democratic Party tradition which they want to import to our peaceful APC and must be resisted. Our party leaders should note that this tactic was used in 2013 to scuttle the ambitions of the same Tony Nwoye after he defeated the same people in a primary televised live on national TV. The litigation went all the way to the Supreme Court and by the time judgment was delivered Dr. Tony Nwoye had just 10 days to campaign. Despite the short time left for him to campaign, he still finished second in the general elections.

In conclusion, Senator Uba asked to be declared winner of an election he clearly lost. There is a popular saying among party members that with the margin of over 2,000 votes to Andy Uba’s 900, Tony Nwoye did not just come first, he came second and third while Uba finished fourth.

Senator Uba should spare us with the “capacity� statement which he has made a sing- song. He should know that the days of PDP abracadabra are over. He does not have the capacity to win any election that is free, fair and transparent in which votes are allowed to count hence he couldn’t win the APC primaries.

Nonso Madu, Anambra APC Governorship aspirant

16

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

POLITICS

Group Politics Editor Tobi Soniyi Email tobi.soniyi@thisdaylive.com 08033146139 SMS ONLY

PERSONALITY FOCUS

Adeyemi as the Stabiliser-in-Chief Recently, the Kogi State House of Assembly was attacked by thugs. It however took the intervention of Senator Smart Adeyemi to stop the crisis from plunging the state into chaos, Yekini Jimoh reports

B

y now, Kogi State would have been plunged into yet another political crisis following a recent invasion of the state’s House of Assembly by some thugs, but for the timely intervention of a former member of the upper chamber of the National Assembly who represented Kogi West senatorial district, Senator Smart Adeyemi, whose intervention brought the situation under control.

It all started when weeks ago some thugs who wanted to attack Hon. Friday Sani Makama stormed the assembly when the plenary had commenced. The armed thugs invaded the hallow chamber, chased out all the lawmakers and beat up anybody they saw as people ran for their dear lives.

The then Speaker, Hon. Imam Umar Ahmed also took to his heels. However, security operatives attached to him were able guide him to safety.

Unfortunately, the member representing Igalamela/Odolu, Hon. Friday Makama who was the target of the invaders was however not so lucky. The rampaging thugs descended on him, beat him and almost stripped him naked.

His aides were also attacked even as the chamber and vehicles belonging to some vehicles belonging to members of the house were damaged. The deputy speaker, Hon. Hassan Bewa Abdullah reportedly wept when the incident took place.

The unprecedented attack took place barely a week after the house members had passed a vote of confidence on the Hon. Umar Imam leadership of the state’s legislative body.

Though details of the cause of the attack remained sketchy, THISDAY reliably gathered that the former speaker became the target of the thugs for two reasons. First, for allowing the suspended Makama to resume, and secondly, for inviting the Commissioner for Finance, Auditor General and the Head of Service to come and explain to the house how the Paris Club Refund was spent by the state government.

Again, sources close to the state assembly also said that some times ago the former speaker granted an interview with journalists in Abuja where he told them that he was never a party to Senator Dino Melaye’s recall being spearheaded by the state government and that what the party needed was reconciliation and not in-house fighting.

All these were said to have angered the state governor, Yahaya Bella who eventually made up his mind to get him impeached even though he had consistently maintained that he had no hand in the assembly crisis.

Sources further disclosed that the former speaker would have been impeached if not for the quick intervention of Adeyemi who was said to have spoken to the governor, pleading with him to allow him resign rather than get him impeached.

Adeyemi, it was gathered, arrived the state capital at about 10pm on that fateful day to prevail on the governor and he was said to have left before 4am to avoid being recognised by people. He met with the governor and the former speaker and was able to broker a soft-landing deal for the lawmaker.

THISDAY sources said Adeyemi’s efforts finally paid off when the governor agreed that the embattled speaker should resign after several pleading.

In his resignation letter dated August 3, 2017, which was addressed to the clerk of the house the former speaker said: “When the Honourable members, last Thursday, showered encomium and passed a vote of

Adeyemi...worked behind the scene to ensure peace

confidence on me, I emphasised that my leadership would always enjoin peace, not only within the legislature but in every part of the state.

“Today, being the third day of August 2017, exactly a year, a week, and a day when you resolved to elect me as the speaker, I am resigning from the office to avert plunging the state into yet another round of crisis.

“I have within one year of my stewardship unified the house, provided a conducive atmosphere for legislative activities and, in the words of Hon. Pedro Obaro, won the hearts and minds of my distinguished honourable colleagues.

“Within the same period, I have revamped the integrity of this noble institution and redirect it on the path of honour, and in line with the democratic principle of separation of powers. Within the same period, some physical changes occurred. I therefore, enjoin the next leadership to consolidate on these humble achievements and sustain the tempo.

“What transpired last Tuesday during

The manner the situation was brought under control by the former lawmaker is an indication that his presence in APC will definitely help the party.

plenary sitting; thugs desecrating the sanctity of this hallowed chamber, was undemocratic, condemnable act of hooliganism, a criminal activity, and an attempted murder. This house should never have to experience a repeat of such barbaric acts. I still hope that the perpetrators will be brought to book.

“I thank you all, my distinguished colleagues for standing by me to the last minute.

I appreciate the confidence you repose in me and, indeed, your support throughout. I equally thank the staff of this august asembly for their support and hope that they extend same to the next leadership.

“To my constituents, I thank them for their unwavering support and solidarity, and their willingness to stand by me always. I urge them to be peaceful and orderly while looking ahead for better days.”

With that intervention what would have been another round of crisis for which the state is well known was averted. Political analyst have been commending the political dexterity and initiative of Adeyemi for helping to douse tension in the state.

According to them, the manner the situation was brought under control by the former lawmaker is an indication that his presence in the All Progressive Congress (APC) will definitely help the party.

“When he dumped PDP for APC we knew that his experience in politics will help the governor in several ways.

“His intervention in the assembly crisis is one of such experiences or else the situation would have gone uncontrollable by now.

“We do hope that someday cabal in the

cabinet of the governor will not see him to be too close to the governor and they will now start to fight him,” said one of the commentators.

There is no doubt that Adeyemi, a former stalwart of PDP who lost his third term bid to return to the Senate to Dino Melaye of the APC and left the former ruling party after allegations of political persecutions by PDP members, is a formidable force in Kogi State politics, particularly in his senatorial district. He has always maintained that his interest in politics is about his people and that as such, he would go any length to contribute to the well-being of the people in his constituency.

Justifying why he left the PDP back then, Adeyemi said: “In fact, my supporters dumped PDP and joined APC before me. We are not looking at issue of party now but development for the people. I need to be in the APC so that we can jointly, with Hon Abiodun Faleke and my brothers, work for the betterment of our people. When I talk to the people in government about the deprivation of our area as a member of the APC, they will not see me as an enemy.”

Adeyemi and Melaye have been at loggerheads since 2015 following the general elections. Adeyemi had claimed that he was the bonafide winner of the 2015 National Assembly election but that the results were manipulated in favour of Melaye. But Melaye disagreed accusing Adeyemi of desperation.

He also said that Adeyemi lost the election because voters in the district were tired of his antics. With the political differences between the duo, both of them have remained in opposing camps even though they are now in the same party. They also sharply disagreed on the performances of the state governor.

When he opted to join the APC, observers were of the view that the Bello-led APC government had cause to celebrate Adeyemi’s decision to pitch his tent with the party. The governor considers him as the only force capable of taming his former ally-turned foe, Melaye, who is from the same local government area of the state with Adeyemi.

As the relationship between Bello and his former allied Melaye who supported him against his kinsman Faleke for the governorship turned sour, Adeyemi is seen as someone who could act as a buffer to contain Melaye’s onslaughts.

Adeyemi was born on 18 August 1960.

He earned a Post Graduate Diploma In Public Relations, Diploma in Law, Advanced Diploma in Mass Communication and a Masters In Public Administration from the Federal University of Technology Owerri, and became a journalist. He was National President of the Nigerian Union of Journalists from 1999 to 2006.

He was elected to the Senate in April 2007. He was appointed to committees on Privatization, Industry, Federal Character and Inter-Government Affairs (Chairman), Federal Capital Territory and Appropriation.

Adeyemi was also appointed vice chairman of the Northern Senators Forum.

Adeyemi won the PDP primary to compete for re-election as Kogi West Senator in the April 2011 elections. However, a court nullified the PDP primary election on 4 April 2011, saying it did not follow due process as defined in the electoral act. A fresh primary was run on 7 April, in which Adeyemi defeated his opponent Abiye Abinso by 1,124 votes to two. In the elections of 9 April 2011, Adeyemi retained his seat but lost in 2015.

T H I S D AY FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

17

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

18

POLITICS

Makarfi’s Peace Initiatives Pay Off in Kwara The peace initiatives of the Ahmed Makarfi-led National Caretaker Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party appear to have recorded some success in Kwara State, as the party’s warring factions have agreed to bury the hatchet and work together, writes Hammed Shittu

Makarfi...reconciliation a priority

A

fter the Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the leadership of Senator Ahmed Makarfi as the authentic national caretaker chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the party leadership commenced series of reconciliatory moves among some state chapters of the party so as to reconcile all frictions that emerged while Makarfi and Ali Modu Sheriff battled for the control of the party.

Among the committees set up at its nonelective convention held in Abuja recently was a reconciliation committee.

The reason is not farfetched. The party was so fractured that many feared then that it might go into extinction. In some states there were as many as three factions struggling to control the party. There was therefore an urgent need to bring all the factions on board. This, the party leadership believed was necessary in mobilising members for all elections including the 2019 general elections.

The party also intervened in states where there were divisions by puttIng in place caretaker committees to reconcile all factions.

One of such states where a caretaker committee was put in place is Kwara state. The party in that state had been enmeshed in leadership crisis following the stalemate that resulted from the last state congress held before the 2015 general election.

The congress which was marred by disputes produced two factional chairmen of the party in Kwara. One of the factions was led by Chief Iyola Oyedepo as its state chairman while the second group was led by Prince Sunday Fagbemi. With their followers, each group tried as much as possible to outsmart each other to take control of the party. Sometimes, the dispute led to breakdown of law and took the intervention of law enforcement agencies to restore peace.

During the crisis, the faction led by Oyedepo held its state congress at the Stella Obasanjo hall, along Ajase-Ipo road, Ilorin while that of Fagbemi held its state congress at the Bekadims hotel, along University of Ilorin, road, Tanke, Ilorin. While the crisis lasted, each faction produced separate executive council of the party for the state.

Expectedly, the seemingly intractable crisis affected the electoral fortune of the party in the state during the 2015 general election especially that of the govenroship election in which the party performed woefully and lost to the All Progressives Congress. The

party could also not win a single seat both at the state’s house of assembly and at the National Assembly.

Instead of the party to work in unity during the said election, the factions worked against each other which eventually affected the electoral success of the party in the state.

Sometimes, the party secretariat located along Asa dam road was turned into a war zone as followers of both groups openly attacked themselves with machetes and other dangerous weapons. Only timely intervention by the police saved the situation from escalating further.

Even the decision of the Supreme Court which upheld the claim of the Makarfi-led caretaker committee as the organ that should be in charge of the party did little to calm fray nerves as each group maintained its claim to be the authentic exco of the party in Kwara.

While Oyedepo insisted that he was the one recognised by Makarfi as the party chairman in the state, Fagbemi also said that he was the one entitled to lead the party in Kwara.

Saddled with the responsibility to reconcile the two groups was the committee led by Chief Tunde Akindehin.

On the day he assumed office, Akindehin said that he was in the state to bring peace to the members in order to ensure electoral victory of the party in the state in the forthcoming general elections in the country.

The caretaker chairman assured that the party will be undergoing what he called “re-engineering” in order to restore people’s confidence.

He appealed to the media to support the party in the rebuilding process, saying without the media whatever the party is doing amounts to an exercise in futility.

He said: “PDP is a changed party. We have come with a bang, a lot of activities, a lot of renovations, a lot of re-engineering and impunity of the past is a gonner. So,

We will ensure that everybody is carried along in the decision making process of this party and recruitment of members.

Nigerians should have confidence in our ability to now bring robust, civilized political activities to the state.

“We would also appeal to you (media), at any time, don’t hesitate to either get to any principal officers of the party at the state level, to inquire anything that is not clear to you, either by the activities of this party or individual or whatever that may happen.

“But we can assure you, we have come here to address all the misgivings of the past, to ensure that peace, unity is returned permanently to this party. No more cleavages; cleavages of the past will be a thing of the past. We will ensure that everybody is carried along in the decision making process of this party and recruitment of members.

“You know the feelings in this country.

Before you own a party, you own Nigeria.

We don’t know and we don’t like the way the Nigeria ship is being directed, and for those who are conscious of our future; the future of our children, we must wake up from our slumber to ensure that we enthrone good governance and democracy.”

He immediately called a meeting of stakeholders of the party in order to commence the reconciliation process. At the meeting, which was held at the state secretariat of the party, were the former governorship candidate of the party during the 2015 general election, Senator Simeon Ajibola, the leaders of the two factions Oyedepo and Fagbemi, former Special Adviser to National Assembly, Senator Ajadi Suleiman, former chairman, Federal Character Commission, Professor Shuaib Oba Abdulraheem, former pioneer chairman of the party, Alhaji Kunle Sulyman, former deputy governor of the state, Chief Joel Ogundeji, former Speaker of the state house of assembly, Hon. Tunde Mohammed among others.

Addressing journalists after the stakeholders meeting of the party, the caretaker chairman, Akindehin said: “We are just emerging form a meeting of the stakeholders here. The leadership of the party in the state are all here with us. Those who are not, are with us in the spirit..

“We deliberated on so many issues that will move the part forward. PDP has come back robustly in Kwara state. There is no doubt that we are having a new rebirth in the state. PDP leadership in Kwara state has come together and resolved that the party has become one family. Seeing is, believing.

“You can see very, very, senior members of the party here with me. The animosities

of the past are all gone; they have a new rebirth now. We have deliberated on some programmes which we have tabled before our people. They are all internal to us but soon we shall make them known to the people”.

He added that, “But first of all we are ready, battle ready for the local government election. And we have discovered some anomalies, so much anomalies, where the Kwara State Independent Electoral Commission (KWSIEC) is now giving a different law where a councillorship candidate, chairmanship candidate will have to pay a different tax in order to obtain form and to make him contest election.

“In modern Nigeria I don’t think the electoral law of Kwara state is bigger than the electoral law of Nigeria. I don’t think so.

So, we also discovered that the exorbitant price asked from aspirant is on the high side.

“We in the PDP are not happy about this because we believe that people should not be turned into slaves before they can contest election. We will fulfil all requirements but not abnormal, obnoxious tax which is no longer in tandem with modern laws”.

He stressed that, “We are saying that we in PDP in all circumstance we have rejected the idea of giving different tax to aspirants, not only in PDP as it affects aspirants in other parties, I know it will also affect their own members but we know they will play around it. We understand politics, we have been in government and we know how it works. They should go into the records; PDP has never done this kind of thing. We are ready for the elections anytime any day.

“Yes there have been some factions in the past in the PDP but those who were responsible are all gone. PDP is now a new baby; we are ready to do the biddings of Nigerians, we are willing to listen to Nigerians; we are ready to remove the pains all over Nigeria”.

Mocking the ruling APC he said: “We will not promise you one naira to one dollar; we will not. If God gives us the ability to achieve that we will do it but the reality is that we must work very hard to remove the pains and the pangs which Nigerian are going through and that will be in the 2019.”

By and large, with this ongoing peaceful resolutions of PDP crisis in the state, the stage is now set for the party to work as a team so as to challenge the ruling APC in the subsequent elections. Will members of the party give this peace initiative a chance?Time will tell.

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Quick Takes FAAN Reviews Emergency Procedures

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN is currently reviewing its emergency procedures across airports in the country to promote safe ight operations.

This was disclosed recently by the Managing Director of FAAN, Saleh Dunoma during a one- day aviation strategic stakeholders’ conference on aircraft emergency in Lagos.

Dunoma said it was the right time to do the review as the agency was currently in the process of certifying all the ďŹ ve major airports in the country.

He noted that the current procedures needed to be improved upon in line with international best practices for the Aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Services (ARFFS) to eectively carry out their responsibilities.

Dunoma who was represented by the Director Operations in the agency, Mr. Rabiu Yadudu promised to continuously strive to meet regulatory requirement and work in synergy with all relevant stakeholders to ensure safety of airport operations. “This is one of the best times for FAAN in general to hold this conference of this importance. A conference that addresses the challenges usually experienced in handling and management of aircraft emergencies; this is because we are currently in the process of certifying all the ďŹ ve major airports in the countryâ€?.

YOU HAVE OUR SUPPORT

Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO, Mr. Ben Langat; Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Senator Abdullahi Adamu; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh; and Governor of Kebbi State, Senator Abubakar Bagudu Atiku, during the presentation of a milking machine to FrieslandCampina WAMCO, by the minister in Abuja ‌ recently

FAAN Workers Threaten to Shut Down Airports over Planned Concession Chinedu Eze Workers of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) under the aegis of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), the Air Transport Service Senior Staff Association (ATSSSAN) and affiliated labour unions have vowed to shut down all air operations in Nigeria from would next week over the planned concession of two major airports in the country. The airports are the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The labour unions said they took the decision because the government is going ahead with the concession programme without carrying the workers along.

AVIATION Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo disclosed on Monday that government had given approval for the concession of the two busiest airports in the country.

But the aviation unions described the plan as fraudulent, insisting that the workers who would be affected by the concession plan were not carried along. They therefore decided they would disrupt airport activities until government meets and reaches agreement with them on the modalities for the concession, which they noted should be in a way that it would be beneficial to government, workers and the country.

President of NUATE, Safiyanu Mohammed told THISDAY

in a telephone interview that the national body of the union would meet today as the joint action committee from FAAN met on Wednesday to reach agreement on the modalities and then communicate same to the national executive of the union.

Secretary of NUATE, Olayinka Abioye also told THISDAY the decision of the NUATE and other unions in the industry and national affiliates was to shut down all air operations if government chose to carry out the concession programme as it were without recourse to the expected procedures by carrying the workers along. “We have said no to concession. We are not unmindful of the benefits of concession when properly done, but this government wants to conces-

sion the four major airports in the country. But one of the fundamental questions is what do they want to concession?

Do they want to concession the terminals, the runways ways or the services? And they said that there won’t be job losses but we know that all over the world there will be job losses when concession takes place,�

Abioye said.

He expressed the regret that the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika had not met with labour to table government’s proposal and plans; rather, he kept them at bay. “We are going to confront the government because what they are doing is fraudulent. We know that when concession is done transparently it is beautiful Continued on page 20

FG Urged to Expedite POF Collection for Ports Devt Eromosele Abiodun Following the controversy trailing the collection of Practitioners’ Operating Fees (POF) approved by the federal government, critical stakeholders in the maritime sector, have called on the government to immediately enforce the policy to ensure ports development.

They stated that the collection of POF, apart from aiming at developing our ports, will also be used to develop the practice of freight forwarding in the country.

The National Association of

ECONOMY Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) stated this in a letter to the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.

They added that the critical role of the freight forwarders as an integral part of shipping which recognises the freight forwarding services as a vital link in global supply chain cannot be underestimated and or overemphasised.

NAGAFF, in the letter signed by its National President, Increase Uche said: “Sir, it sounds ridiculous and beggars reason

and preposterous when some opponents of the collection of POF raise issues of it adding to the cost of clearing goods at our ports. This is laughable.

We wish to remind you sir that similar approvals were given to NIMASA to collect three per cent gross registered tonnage of all vessels calling to our ports.

Another is the two per cent of the total contract sum on cabotage vessels. This is to enhance the development of indigenous tonnage for Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) and so also seven per cent surcharge port development levy for NPA. “Is it not hypocritical for

some people to now raise the issue of adding to the cost of doing business now that Government, out of its ingenuity and benevolence wants to create avenue for Freight Forwarders to get properly trained and positioned to perform their functions with honour and integrity. As it stands today the freight forwarding profession remains the worst neglected sub sector of the economy, in spite of the fact that all over the world it is seen as the barometer to measure economic activities in any clime. Our major concern is Continued on page 20

In-house Training Saves FAAN N500m

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) said it has saved over N500 million from its in- house training programme for its sta across airports in the country.

General Manager, training, FAAN, Mr. Nath McAbraham Inajoh said the aforementioned sum would have been spent on duty tour allowance (DTA) for overseas training of over 5,000 sta in the last one year.

Inajoh who spoke on Economic Recession and survival strategy at the just concluded Nigeria Institute of Management, Ikeja chapter member’s week in Lagos, said the in- house training system had to be adopted as management was reluctant in embarking on any training due to paucity of funds. “Between 2013 till date, it’s been tough training in FAAN because of the economic situation and the panic I had was how do you supervise a department that is not doing anything because of paucity of funds, so we put our heads together and made a proposal to management and we said okay, what is the problem when it comes to the training, we discovered it was cost eective.

In government, when you pay the consultant N3 million for a 2day programme and you have a class size of 30 sta, you going to pay the sta around N7 million for DTA’s, so the cost of that training programme is N10 million, when management sees N10 million they back o, the better part of the cost I saw was actually the allowances that goes to sta, so how do you manage that?� he queried.

Emirates Entices Nigerian Travellers

Emirates has announced the oering to Nigerians travellers the opportunity to explore all its 11 destinations in the US with special fares on Economy Class and Business Class tickets. “Whether you want to enjoy the relaxed feel of the West Coast, or taste the amazing and aordable cuisine in San Francisco, or even take a “tech-tourâ€? of the Silicon Valley, the United States has something for every traveller,â€? the airline said it keeps all the options open.

Emirates said all inclusive, Business Class fares from Lagos to Boston (BOS) starts at $6,349 while Economy Class fares to same destination starts at $1,249. From Lagos to Chicago starts at $6,349 for Business class while the Economy class fare for same destination starts at $1,349. From Lagos to Dallas/Fort worth (DFW) starts at $6,349 for Business class while the Economy class fare for same destination starts at $1,349. From Lagos to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) starts at $6,349 for Business class while Economy class fare for same destination starts at $1,499.

“Open skies for Africa needs a level playing field. In Nigeria airlines are run as private concerns without government funding, so it will be difficult to compete with another airline receiving funds from government,�

Deputy Managing Director, Arik Air, Captain Ado Sanusi

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BUSINESSWORLD FAAN WORKERS THREATEN TO SHUT DOWN AIRPORTS OVER PLANNED CONCESSION to behold and if concession is the key for infrastructural renewal, this is not the way to go about it. Sirika does not want be a servant but a slave driver,� Abioye added.

Also a senior official of ATSSSAN, FAAN branch, told THISDAY that it would be a herculean job for the company that becomes the concessionaire of the airports because of how it would deal with the existing concessionaires who already had many years deal with government at the airports designated for concession.

He also noted that these airports earmarked for concession are the ones that generate about 80 percent of FAAN’s revenue, which the agency uses to fund and manage the other airports; “so the challenge is, when you concession these airports, where will FAAN get money to manage the other airports not given out in concession?�.

FG URGED TO EXPEDITE POF COLLECTION FOR PORTS DEVT the grave danger this scenario portends for the government and the polity.�

NAGAFF warned that when individuals or groups are allowed to obstruct government or any of its agencies, the powers of the government are whittled down, and a serious blow is dealt to the integrity and authority of that government. “May we remark that it is getting to a point wherein the Hon. Minister under the Act should evoke its powers to deregister a non-conforming association to the control and regulation of Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria because laws are made to be obeyed and respected. Honourable Minister sir, may we raise this poser for your Ministry to look into: is it proper for government to give in to cheap blackmail by someone or group wanting to use the court to tie the hand of the government unnecessarily?th POF payment and collection.�

Group Business Editor

Ă’Ă“Ă•Ă‹ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă¤Ă?Ě‹ ĂĄĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă&#x;Ă•Ă&#x; AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

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Comms/e-Business Editor

Ă—Ă—Ă‹ Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă”Ă“ Capital Market Editor

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Senior Correspondent

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NEWS

Dakuku: Policing, An Integral Element of Virile Maritime Sector Eromosele Abiodun The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside has stated that effective policing is an essential component of the development and growth process of the Nigerian maritime sector.

Peterside stated this while receiving a delegation of the Police Force, Maritime Command led by the Commissioner of Police in charge of the Command, David Folawiyo who paid him a courtesy visit at the Nigerian Maritime Resource Development Centre (NMRDC), Lagos.

He noted that the police officer’s first order of business was to serve and protect and that as an agency of the government of Nigeria, whose mandates include ensuring safety of the Nigerian’s waterways, NIMASA places premium on security and all legal agencies and instruments that facilitate and complement delivery of these mandates. “Let me commend you for what is in the offing to improve the nation’s maritime sector, particularly your plan to provide more police personnel to secure our waterways.

We are impressed for the plans you have put in place to complement our efforts in ensuring that our maritime domain is safe for maritime and shipping activities to thrive. We are opened to partnership and collaboration, especially with the Nigerian Police Force�, said the police chief.

He observed that security has a wide implication for

the maritime sector adding, NIMASA is taking the issue of security seriously in line with the global industry benchmark and standard, particularly the International Ships and Ports Facility security (ISPS) Code to enhance growth and regional stability. Speaking further, Peterside commended the delegation and the entire Maritime Command of the Police Force, noting that a symbiotic relationship between NIMASA and other institutions of government in Nigeria was necessary to guarantee safety and security of our maritime

corridor, hence further promote ease of doing business in the country, in line with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC).

In his response, Folawiyo noted that his command was in NIMASA to fraternise with the agency for its achievements since the assumption of Peterside as Director General; and to also chart a path of possible partnership and collaboration as well as inform the agency of the Command’s plans and activities.

He noted that a strong cogent relationship between

NIMASA and the Nigerian Police Force was necessary to ensure a safe and secure maritime environment and that his team was ready to support the agency to realise it enabling mandates.

Folawiyo disclosed that the number of Police Officers deployed to the 63 police outposts within his Command. He added that the existing 2,500 Officers and men within his jurisdiction would be augmented to 5,000 on or before December, 2017.

He informed the NIMASA management that 1,300 men

would be deployed to cover maritime alone, while 1,200 and 200 Officers and men are expected to be deployed to cover ports and coast activities respectively.

According to Folawiyo, “We are planning to bring in two helicopters to provide aerial surveillance of our maritime domain; and we are also seeking the approval of government to establish the Western and Eastern Maritime Zone to ensure effective policing and we know that this visit to NIMASA is a step in the right direction.�

MEDIA PARLEY

L-R; General Manager, Chief Compliance Officer, Compliance Division, Keystone Bank, Mrs. Joyce Obi; Chief Compliance Officer, UBA, Plc. Mr. Franklyn Bennie; President, Association of Chief Compliance of Banks in Nigeria/Chief Compliance Officer, Stanbic IBTC, Mr. Opeyemi Rotimi Adojutelegan; and Chief Compliance Officer, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Raheem Owodeyi, at a press conference on the Association 10th anniversary held in Lagos‌ recently

Youths Protest Interim Management 40 Youth Entrepreneurs Receive N82m Seed Capital Committee for MAN, Oron Okon Bassey in Uyo Hundreds of youths from the host local government area of the premier Maritime Academy of Nigeria , MAN, Oron in Akwa Ibom state Wednesday staged a protest over the appointment of a six-man Interim Management Committee (IMC) by the Federal Government for the institution.

The Oro youths, under the umbrella of Akpakip Eyo Abasie Youth Association said it was totally wrong that the Interim Management team was constituted to run the Maritime Academy for the next six months without a representative of the area in the management.

The youths, who described as biased the appointment, noted that the six-man interim management committee headed

by Chief Adebayo Sarumi and Mr. Duja Effedua as the acting Rector of the academy was inaugurated September 6, 2017 by the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.

During the protest, the leader of the youths, Baron Iniekung stressed that the host

community, not only rejected the six-man IMC, but also demanded that the academy be upgraded to the much expected maritime university.

Particular of their interest was that they do not want a non-indigene as rector of the academy denying capable hands from the area. “It is very disheartening to note that as a prominent indigene of the Niger Delta, Chibuike Amaechi who should have treated us fairly and justly now turns to maltreat us and work against our collective interest as a people. “We are further surprised by the recent action of the minister which is not only unfair, unjust but unpatriotic and contrary to his earlier stated commitment to develop the academy to a world-class institution. “We strongly view this action as a calculated attempt by the minister to strangulate the only federal institute in Oron much to the detriment of the stakeholders in the maritime subsector and the host community,� he said.

The academy’s host community, Oron; stakeholders in

maritime sector, and youth group had earlier have condemned the appointment of IMC for the maritime varsity.

They had stressed that the development appeared that there was an emergent situation in the academy, which needed to be addressed through the interim management.

The assertion was contained in a statement jointly signed by representatives of three groups: Oro Nation Patriotic Elders Forum with its chairman, Chief Effiakedoho Antai and secretary, Offong Ekpaha. Others are Forum of Non-Indigenes president, Yakubu Umar; secretary, Wale Adekunle, and director of media, Chukwuma Obiora; Concerned Youth Advocacy Group of Oro president, Mr. Joseph Attah and secretary, Mr. Anthony Uweh.

The groups, which expressed their displeasures over the newly constituted committee and the appointment of a new rector outside the academy or transport sector, demanded explanation from the federal government why it decided on such decision.

from Hero’s Foundation David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka Hero’s Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of Intafact Beverages has empowered 40 youth entrepreneurs with amounts ranging from N1million to N3million as seed capital to power their vision of becoming entrepreneurs.

The Foundation on Tuesday in Onitsha in the second phase of its kickstart programme doled out the cash, saying that its dream was to raise the next set of entrepreneurs that would employ others as a way of fighting unemployment in the society.

The foundation said the awardees were chosen after a one week rigorous training and mentoring sessions by seasoned business experts.

The beneficiaries, drawn from the five states of the South East, as well as Benue, Delta and Edo states were empowered in Cat fish farming, poultry, table water, palm oil, pigry, photography, theatre and entertainment, among

others.

The chairman of the foundation and the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe said that the beneficiaries were selected from a total of 5,000 applications tendered to the foundation.

He said the foundation last year, empowered a total of 24 youths from 1,700 applicants, a sharp increase he described as a clear indication of the steady growth of teeming unemployed youths in Nigeria seeking for opportunities to nurture their God-given talents.

He however said the organisation has been filling that gap, expressing satisfaction that all the beneficiaries were making progress in their various areas of endeavours, urging them to double their efforts.

Achebe was also optimistic that the entrepreneurs, through their empowerment, would touch lives in many ways especially in this economic challenges bedeviling the nation.

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BUSINESSWORLD

RISK MGT WATCH

Agric Minister Lauds FrieslandCampina WAMCO As Huge Investor in Nigeria The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, has donated a portable motorised milking machine to FrieslandCampina WAMCO, while lauding the company as the biggest investor in Nigeria’s dairy sector.

The machine has a capacity to milk 50 cows a day. Ogbeh made the symbolic donation while declaring open the National Livestock Conference organised by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) taking place at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.

The objective of the conference, which runs from September 11-15, 2017 is to

proffer solutions to major challenges of livestock production in the country, including farmer-herdsmen clashes. According to the minister, the donation was part of FMARD’s commitment to public-private partnerships in improving dairy farming and “it is also in recognition of FrieslandCampina WAMCO as the biggest investor in local milk production in Nigeria.�

Ogbeh said he was satisfied at the peaceful co-existence of Fulani herdsmen and indigenes of the local communities where FCWAMCO currently operates its Dairy Development Programme.

In his response, the Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO, Mr. Ben Langat, expressed

gratitude at the minister’s gesture and re-affirmed the company’s commitment to improving dairy farming. He said: “We now have five milk collection centres across Oyo State, even as we strengthen the infrastructure for quality milk production, train local dairy farmers and continue to ensure high quality of milk for our consumers.� “We are also developing small holder dairy farming businesses supported by feed development and cross breeding programs to ensure sustainable dairy farming.

Our plan is to ensure dairy farming remains economically viable by establishing the right structures and agricultural practices for sustainability�

Langat said.

Experts to Address Lapses in Payment System at Innovation Summit Emma Okonji In order to address the challenges associated with electronic payment system in the country, financial and technology experts will speak at the Point of Sales (PoS) Innovation Summit, being organised by one of the Central Bank of Nigeria licensed Payment Terminal Service Provider (PTSP), Global Accelerex Limited.

The maiden innovation summit, which is billed to hold in Lagos on the 29th September, is an intervention to address the gaps noticeable in the expectations of stakeholders and the reality of the PoS business sector of the Nigerian payments system.

Speaking on the summit, the Managing Director of Global Accelerex, Mr. Tunde Ogungbade, pointed out that the motive behind the summit, was the need for stakeholders to jointly address issues mitigating the achievement of optimum performance and results in the PoS business in Nigeria.

According to him, the effective and full-scale introduction of PoS terminal as a recognised

channel of transaction in Nigeria, occurred with the introduction of the cashless policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria in 2012 and prior to this time, transactions via the PoS occurred in trickles. “The introduction of the cashless policy gave rise to a lot of interest in the PoS business with resultant investment by various stakeholders such as banks, terminal suppliers, Payment Terminal Service Providers (PTSPs), Payment Terminal Application Developers (PTADs), Payment Card manufacturers, among others. “A review of the performance of the PoS sector revealed a very wide margin between stakeholder expectations and realities in terms of performance, adoption and of course Return on Investment (RoI) in spite of the potentials and the opportunities available in the industry, where PoS penetration is still low as there is need for more devices with innovative retail offerings,� Ogungbade said.

He stated further that the summit, which would be held on a quarterly basis is an intervention designed as a platform to address the

noticeable gaps in the PoS business in Nigeria as well as to promote the adoption and usage of innovative PoS solutions in order to achieve the objectives of attaining sustainable growth in the sector.

Each edition of the summit will focus on a wide array of issues such as innovation, security of transactions, financial inclusion, fulfilment of customer expectations, business sustainability and profitability and other critical topics.

Notable leaders of thought and industry experts invited as resource persons at the summit include: Deputy Director, Banking and Payments System, CBN, Mr. Musa Jimoh; Chairman, Association of Mobile Money Operators, Mr. Sarafadeen Fasasi; the Managing Director, Artee Industries Limited (SPAR), Mr. Prakash Keswani; Managing Director, Global Accelerex, Mr. Tunde Ogungbade, and Dr. Doyin Salami of Lagos Business School, among others.

Participants at the summit will include representatives of all major stakeholders from banks, terminal manufacturers, merchants, system aggregators and regulators among others.

MultiChoice Refutes Report on Pay-PerView Launch Emma Okonji Pay-television service provider, MultiChoice Nigeria, has described as untrue, reports that it is about launching a pay-per-view service in the country.

The company’s position was made in a statement issued in Lagos on Wednesday to set the records straight.

Referring to the recent fight between Flloyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor, it explained that MultiChoice gave access to its DStv premium package subscribers in Africa

to view the fight, but further explained that subscribers to the pay television services in the USA, paid additional $99 on Pay-Per-View basis to access the fight.

MultiChoice said by providing access to its premium package subscribers, demonstrates the great value DStv provides to its subscribers in Nigeria.

MultiChoice clarified that Pay-Per-View is a pay television service whereby subscribers of a particular television provider can purchase additional sporting events to view over and above their normal subscription

package and charges.

It however emphasised that the service does not currently exist in Nigeria or anywhere else in Africa at the moment, but is being used in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The company assured that its customers would receive direct communication should any new DStv service be offered in the future, adding that it remains committed to continuously providing world class content and improved value to its customers at all times.

RISK MANAGEMENT WATCH Robert Mbonu

Risk Culture – “Do As I Say, Not As I Do?�

Language is defined as a system of communication used by people in a particular country or type of work consisting of sounds, words, and grammar.

The key word in this definition is “communication�. For communication to be effective the intended message must be successfully delivered, received and understood. In an organisation (government ministry, department and agency) it enables the employees to deepen their connection with others and improve team work, decision-making, and problem solving capacity. Organisations in Nigeria are made up of employees from different native languages, backgrounds and education levels.

Since risk management is fundamental to business success and long term sustainability, it implies that the understanding of this management science through a common language and meaning is critical for its successful embedding and implementation.

Effective risk management is not just about having good policies, procedures, risk registers and processes, it needs to involve everyone in the organisation, from the Board Chairman, CEO (Minister, Perm Sec.) down to the clerical officer. For that to happen, there needs to be a common language that enables everyone to talk about risk, and to be able to understand each other.

Risk management provides us with the discipline and the language to take a step back every now and then and project our thoughts forward, through mutual discussion and conversations, and to discuss the longer term effect of whatever it is that we are doing in the organisation.

Therefore the language and vocabulary have to be common and pervasive. They have to be conveyed into every part of the organisation and to become a part of the common language for the business at every level. This means that it has to be kept simple, straightforward and understandable.

This common language is crucial to establishing a long lasting risk management process that encapsulates and provides structure to all the risk management processes. The risk management policies, frameworks and operating model are normally how this is articulated, but are made real by the consistent use and sharing of the common language throughout the organisation.

The establishment and articulation of the overall direction for integrated enterprise risk management, including vision, objectives, supports this common language. This also ensures the successful integration of the risk management function into the organisation.

It also ensures all are speaking the same risk management language and totally understand each other.

Here is an A to Z of do’s and don’ts regarding effectively employing risk language and vocabulary; A – Absolutely no acronyms – there’s nothing more effective at putting people off risk management than a series of letters that no one understands.

B – The benefits of sharing a common language for risk management are vast and must be stressed.

C – Consistent communication is the bedfellow of successful risk management.

D – Define clearly what you are talking about and provide easy to access definitions of the more complex aspects of risk management E – Energy is required to make communicating

risk management successful F – Finishing the causal loop in your mind will help to predict what the outcome might be G – Good Governance keeps the discipline of the common language in place.

H – Making the risk management language part of the organisational habit is important.

I – Incentives are important to ensure that the use of the language is shared and consistent.

J – Joining the risk management language up with the language of the organisation is critical to ensure that there are no inconsistencies.

K – Key terms should be emphasised persistently and consistently.

L – Listening and Learning how the language is used throughout the organisation will help to recognise that the language is being used consistently and is understood.

M – Myths are common if the language is not consistently used.

O – Ownership of the language rests with the whole enterprise. It is a mistake to assume that the risk management practitioners keep the language to themselves.

P – Practice the language and vocabulary at every opportunity.

Q – Qualitative and Quantitative language and vocabulary should be developed.

R – Reports should use the language and vocabulary.

S – Specific terms might need to be explained in a glossary which is easily accessible.

T – The language of threats should be identified separately from the language of opportunity.

U – Uncertainty is the central theme of risk management and the language and vocabulary should reflect this.

V – Value through the use of the language and vocabulary should be measured through the outputs of the risk management processes.

W – Whistle blowing should be widely encouraged as part of the governance process and the language of risk management should speak to this. In order to implement a consistent approach to the use of the language and vocabulary of risk management, we must consider make a statement that clearly sets out the objectives for integrating the risk management language into the wider use of language in the organisation.

This statement must at the outset set out what is meant by risk, risk management, opportunity, threat, risk analysis, risk evaluation, risk control, risk action.

Once everyone in the organisation is using a consistent language for risk management, from the CEO to the most junior officer, then there can be an open and frank exchange about the opportunities and threats that bear upon the achievement of the organisation’s goals.

It is only with that common language that the organisation can predict and respond to opportunities and threats as they present themselves in the day to day activities.

Imagine being driven in a fast car by a driver who doesn’t understand what you mean when you say “slow down� – it will be tantamount to an accident waiting to happen! r.CPOV '&31 $*3. 6, )$*# .T3.

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BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

Air Peace Chairman Urges FG to Build Storage Airports Ugo Aliogo, and Omotayo Ajayi The Chairman of Air Peace Nigeria, Mr. Allen Onyema, has called on the federal government to build storage airports in the Northern part of the country in order to boost growth in the aviation sector.

Onyema, who stated this in Lagos recently at the closing session of a five-day training organised by the foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN) on non-violence for members of Arewa, Indgenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and other agitators, said if government invests in storage airports, it would provide more revenue to the economy, create jobs and improve the growth of the aviation sector.

He said the choice of locating the storage airport in the Northern part is due to the climate of the region, adding that the region is suitable for such facilities and it would strive better there.

He maintained that if the country has one or more storage airports, new airplanes from

other countries can be kept there, which would provide revenue for the economy, stressing that there are a lot of untapped opportunities in the sector which government has to tap into.

The Air peace Chairman also noted that they have acquired three Boeing; B777, B777, B737 and 6Embraer145jet which is presently kept in a dry storage airport in France.

Onyema, who is also the Chairman of FEHN said the five days training programme has helped to engender unity and the spirit of nationhood amongst the various interest groups that participated.

He further stated that if the country is committed at achieving progress, there is need to pursue peace and justice, adding that conflict in itself is not too bad; because it can be a catalyst for positive change.

He said that with the conclusion of the programme is that they have entrenched the values of peace and unity in the participants which would have a positive effect on the country,

adding that the training also featured examinations which would qualify participants to attend the next phase of the training in Emory University in US. The participants were presented with certificates after the training and examination. “The reason for choosing the North is due to the climate. In the north is more conducive.

The south is not conducive.

However, it doesn’t matter where it is sited. In terms of funding, we are financially disciplined in Air Peace. Regarding the issue of concession, government has no role doing business. If they concession the two airports, they have done the right thing. Murtala Mohammad Airport 2 that is been run by the private sector, it is the best airport in the country. “In concession of these airports, they need to assure the workers they would not lose their jobs. Remember when government is doing business, there is the tendency to over employ and when you over employ, it doesn’t help businesses grow.

Dana Air Gets IATA Membership Chinedu Eze A Nigerian Carrier, Dana Air has been formally announced as the newest member of The International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The airline said the IATA membership is coming two years after the airline passed its International Operations Safety Audit (IOSA) and was admitted into the association’s global safety registry.

The Accountable Manager of Dana Air, Mr. Obi Mbanuzuo while responding to the airline’s latest achievement said: “Becoming a member of IATA is a significant milestone for us at Dana Air and this only demonstrates our level of professionalism and commitment to

operational efficiency in terms of providing our guests with safe, seamless and world-class air transport service in Nigeria. “Apart from the fact that this membership will further strengthen our relationship with other international airlines, we see it as an opportunity to take our amazing products to the global stage through interline and code-share agreements. You would recall that Dana Air is the first and only Nigerian airline to have undergone an operational audit conducted by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and its foreign partners – The Flight Safety Group, and we are determined to reinforce our strategic route network within and beyond Nigeria.’’ Dana Air said in further-

ance of its well-known good customer service, it recently launched a Special Services Unit to attend to passengers with special needs, urgent complaints and to update passengers on current promos and benefits of Dana Miles at the airports in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Uyo and Owerri.

The airline said it has flown over 2.7 million passengers in the last eight years of its operation, adding that it is one of the leading Nigerian airlines with daily flights from Lagos to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Uyo and Owerri. “We are reputed for its innovative online-products, unrivaled on-time performance and world-class in-flight service,� the airline said.

NAMA Trains Personnel on Search and Rescue Chinedu Eze The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has commenced a comprehensive competency appraisal of all Aeronautical Information Services (AIS) Officers in all airports across the country.

The exercise, which is targeted at testing AIS officers in areas such as Aeronautical Charts, AIS Publication and Operations started from the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos and is to proceed to other airports in the country in the coming weeks.

Managing Director of NAMA, Capt. Fola Akinkuotu said: “Considering the pivotal role aeronautical information plays in safety of air navigation, and in the light of ongoing migration to AIS Automation, due consideration must be given to the integrity of data being disseminated to airspace users, hence this exercise.�

Capt. Akinkuotu who said

NAMA places premium on building capacity of staff noted that sustained training and retraining of personnel is being carried out by the agency to ensure they possess the competencies required to perform critical functions that impact on safety and for them keep pace with modern trends in a highly dynamic world of aviation.

Also speaking on exercise, the General Manager, AIS, Mr. Kabir Gusau noted that the competency check which shall be periodic is in line with Annex 15 of International Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and is necessary “to ensure that personnel demonstrate the required competencies to handle specific critical operations,� adding that constant assessment would enable the agency to detect and correct shortfalls as they occur.

In a related development,

Akinkuotu has charged Air Traffic Controllers who recently returned from a three-week Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator Course in Kenya to ensure that the training impacts positively on the overall safety procedures of the agency.

Speaking while receiving the participants in his office, at the agency’s headquarters in Lagos, the NAMA boss, who promised to approve the training of another batch of Air Traffic Controllers on the same course in November, charged them to use the benefit of the course to improve on the agency’s preparedness to handle emergencies.

The Search and Rescue Mission Coordinator Course, which held at the East African School of Aviation, Nairobi Kenya is designed to equip participants with the capacity and skills to initiate Search and Rescue and man the Rescue Coordination Centres in a Flight Information Region (FIR).

AIR WATCH

olowo

Improved Safety in Nigeria’s Airspace

A

viation experts who met at the 13th Akwaaba African Travel Market ‘Aviation Day’ in Lagos on Monday brainstormed on the progress made in the area of safety in the industry over the years.

They came to the conclusion that there have been a lot of improvements in air safety in the industry since 2006 when the regulatory authority was made autonomous. They also agreed that the progress improved more since the last five years, climaxing in 2016 when Nigeria and the world recorded the least incidents and accidents.

Since 2013 after the Associated Aviation Flight 361 crash at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, the country has not recorded any air accident with commercial flights, except helicopter accidents that followed in succession.

In the presentation he made as lead speaker, the President, Sabre Network West Africa cum President, Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative (ARTI), Gabriel Olowo said that investigations have confirmed that 80 percent of the accidents that happened in Nigeria were caused by pilot errors.

Olowo said what has enhanced air safety in Nigeria on the side of the airlines was that the airlines have made efforts to abide by international standards of safety. They have keyed into the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), which in 2012, ministers from African states stipulated should be as a criterion for awarding Air Operator Certificate (AOC) for African airlines from 2018.

Since then, many Nigerian airlines have earned IOSA certification and airline like Arik Air has in addition obtained enhanced IOSA, known as e-IOSA and also European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certification.

Olowo said by embracing IOSA and IATA standard safety assessment, the airlines have significantly improved their safety standard.

He noted that airlines, in their quest for safety, have gone extra mile to subject themselves to audit by other jurisdiction outside their own registration; example, EASA certification in addition to that of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).

The President of Sabre Network West Africa added that airlines have also intensified human capital development through routine and schedule trainings for all, especially pilots, since pilot error do account for about 80 percent of all aviation accidents, there have been implementation of safety management system (SMS).

He said more budgets are set aside by airlines for maintenance and dedicated account for maintenance reserve as accident is planned through neglect / poor maintenance. He noted that this was not all, as operators are successfully moving to newer and younger fleets with lower operational and maintenance cost, as financial institutions are disposed to extending credit facilities to these airlines that are willing to effectively service the loans.

Like Olowo, other speakers at the forum also acknowledged that there has been improvement in safety in Nigeria’s air transport industry in the last five years, climaxing in 2016 and expressed the hope that the country would continue to record accident free aviation sector in the coming years.

Olowo also noted that 1,312 lives were lost in 10 accidents over the past 48 years in Nigeria and pilot error accounted for 80 percent while maintenance and weather accounted for the remaining 20 percent.

He said there have been more economic lease and lesser purchase Conditions from aircraft suppliers, adding that there is also continuous advocacy for improved aviation infrastructure, acceleration of international Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety related standard and recommended practices.

On the side of regulation, Olowo said that there has been acceleration of ICAO safety related standard and recommended practices by NCAA, the effective enforcement of these regulations on airlines, noting that on paper, NCAA is autonomous in accordance to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Act, 2006. He remarked that there is need to always get Director Generals who would be courageous enough to assert this autonomy, as government officials always tend to interfere on the affairs of the agency.

He added that an autonomous Civil Aviation Authorities with less and less government interference would result to more efficient regulation.

Also, Head, Public Relations Accident Investigation Bureau, (AIB) Tunji Oketunbi attributed some of the progress made in the industry to the effective regulation of the sector by NCAA, which continued to improve over the years. “Airlines have a tendency to cut corners but it is the responsibility of NCAA to ensure proper checks are carried out on the airline, especially on the aircraft maintenance and pilot certifications. During accident investigations, AIB is able to reveal a lot of things either on the side of the regulators, the airlines or the service providers.

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BUSINESSWORLD

INTERVIEW

Onyema: Govt, Investors Must Work Together to Grow the Aviation Sector Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema reasons that for Nigeria to firm up the value of the naira, government and airline operators must work together to curtail the amount of foreign currency taken out of the country by the aviation industry. He spoke to Chinedu Eze. Excerpts: President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, and he called for a meeting and we met with him and gave him details of our grouses. And he called for an enlarged meeting of all the agencies and the Ministry of Aviation and the airline operators.

We held a second meeting where we presented our issues. Osinbajo set up a committee to look at these issues and the committee is yet to meet. The committee comprises the Minister of Aviation and the agencies and maybe about three representatives from the airlines. We are yet to meet and I think from the Ministers’ office they said we shall be meeting immediately after the Sallah break. So I am sure government is trying to look into our complaints. This is because aviation has to grow in this country.

The industry is beset with a lot of problems, which we believe government will help us to tackle. There is the issue of multiple taxation, poor airport infrastructure is there, the attitude of civil servants to investment in Nigeria and to investors is also a matter that calls for concern.

In Nigeria people look at the ownership of investment instead of looking at the investment and its contribution to the economy and job creation. Civil servants in government should start looking at investors as patriotic people.

Anybody who looks at the investment climate in Nigeria and decides to put his money here should be respected, supported and not the other way round.

What is your evaluation of the Nigerian travel market vis-a-vis the performance of Air Peace?

The aviation industry in Nigeria is not at the level we should have expected it to be, but it is still growing. There is a lot of improvement needed in the industry. When I was coming in, I was warned about the harsh environment under which Nigerian airlines were operating.

I dismissed such warnings with a wave of the hand, but now I have seen it all.

Air Peace will be three years on October 24 this year. In less than three years I have received my own baptism of fire. I have gone to the school of Nigerian aviation, I have seen it all and I make bold to say that there is a lot to be desired. However, Air Peace, as I promised during our launching on October 21 in 2014, was coming to revolutionise the way the scheduled flight operations is done in the country. We have lived up to that promise we made.

From the depletion of operational aircraft and the suspension of services by some airlines, it is very evident that if Air Peace had not come at the time it did, one wonders what would have been happening in scheduled operations today.

Our coming helped to sustain competitive fares in domestic travel market. We have contributed our own quota to the economic development of this nation and we are proud of what we have been able to achieve as an airline so far.

We have caused a lot of changes in the aviation industry; we brought with us on-time departure that was lacking before we came in.

We provided several frequencies right from the first day. It was the first time an airline will be doing 14 flights on their first day of operation.

We opened up five different stations the same day. So we took the bull by the horns right from day one and we have never looked back.

So, to a large extent, Air Peace has contributed in changing the face of aviation in Nigeria.

What is your fleet size now and what is your plan for expansion?

We started with seven aircraft; four Boeing B737 and three Donnier 328 jets. Today, we have been able to acquire 15 more aircraft. So we now have a total of 22 aircraft in our fleet.

So Air Peace is Nigeria’s largest carrier today fleet-wise. We have 13 Boeing B737s, six Embraer 145 regional jets and one Donnier 328 jet. We also have two Boeing777 for our international operations, which are still domiciled outside the country.

This feat could not have been achieved without the corporation of our banks. And it is also the evidence of our integrity. If we are not effectively servicing our loans, I doubt if the banks would have been supporting us. Today Fidelity Bank has supported us massively, we are keying into United Bank for Africa too.

I am sure they will come on stream when they see what we are doing. With Fidelity we are good to go, they have been supporting the affairs of Air Peace massively because we have integrity.

With your long-haul aircraft delivered, why are you not operating international services yet?

We will go into international operations very soon. We planned that we would go into international operations two years after we had started. So it was in our business plan to go international, to help conserve Nigeria’s foreign exchange and to help create Nigerian wealth for the people of Nigeria. Air Peace is not unaware of what the foreign airlines have been doing to our country. A nine-hour flight from Johannesburg to London would cost less than a six-hour flight from Lagos to London. This country has been raped; our foreign reserves have been depleted in the hands of foreign airlines. All foreign airlines are making a kill out of Nigeria because Nigerian airlines are not firmly operating international destinations. So

Onyema

Nigerians are now at the mercy of these foreign airlines in terms of outrageous fares that they charge. So we decided to go international and we are taking it step by step.

As I stated earlier, we have acquired two Boeing B777, very beautiful aircraft, with state-of -the-art equipment. We should have by now started our foreign operations but for some kind of hindrances that have to do with policy.

We are ready to touch the whole world but we

So we need our own government to show support to us, to be proud to talk about Nigerian airlines.

Let’s start talking about Nigerian airlines, let’s stop talking about Ethiopia Airlines

need the support of government and people of Nigeria. The Boeing 777 aircraft we bought have to be type certificated by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) because before now no Nigerian airline has operated the aircraft type. That is why we are waiting on Boeing and the Nigerian government, as represented by the NCAA to come together and type certificate Nigeria on the aircraft type.

It is after that NCAA will be able to carry out oversight function on the aircraft.

We have facilitated the training of NCAA pilots and engineers on the aircraft. That is why the aircraft are not yet in Nigeria and it costs Air Peace hugely to maintain them where they are outside the country. After the type certification we can now bring in these beautiful birds into the country. We will save Nigeria a lot of money when we begin to operate international destinations. We need more domestic airlines to operate international.

We have received one approval from one of the countries we wish to fly to, we are not ready to announce it yet but once we get type certificated we will announce that to Nigerians and we will start operations and we promise Nigerians that we are going to compete with the best airlines in the world. These foreign airlines do not want any Nigerian airline to succeed but we are going to break that jinx.

I know that under Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), the airlines have been making efforts to make government review the alleged double taxation on airlines. How far have you gone in this?

The Airline Operators of Nigeria took this matter to the then acting President, the Vice

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has recommended ways African countries can boost the aviation industry to create more jobs and generate more revenue. IATA also talked about inimical government policies in Africa. What is the way out of these challenges as an operator?

Government must protect the investments that create and sustain jobs for the citizens. That should be the priority behind government policies. In aviation, government must ensure that local airlines are protected. Foreign airlines don’t create jobs for Nigerians; they don’t pay huge taxes that we pay; so government should encourage these indigenous companies.

A government official recently told me that allowing foreign airlines to fly to many airports as they want in the country is good for competition.

That did not make sense to me because those airlines that come to Nigeria are protected by their host countries. They so not allow foreign airlines to dominate them. That is what our government should be doing for us.

I don’t know why Ethiopia Airlines is being over celebrated in Nigeria. It does not do us in this country any good, we should be proud of our own. Nothing stops Ethiopian Airlines from doing code-sharing with any of our airlines like Arik and Azman. They can bring these people from wherever in the country and Ethiopian Airlines will take them from there.

By so doing you will be creating capacity for the indigenous airlines. No country anywhere in the world allows this kind of open rape of their aviation skies.

In Africa Nigeria seems to be too liberal; allowing all airlines from the continent to come to the country. But recently our request to go to Togo was snubbed until we threatened court action. In diplomacy there is the principle of reciprocity. So when they are harsh to us, we should also be harsh to them; in that way we would protect our own and also be respected.

When we requested to fly to Cote D’Ivoire, the Honourable Minister gave us permission but Cote d’Ivoire didn’t want us to come in until we wanted to go to court to stop them from coming into Nigeria. They quickly gave us permit but they waited for us in their country.

When we went there to setup, what happened?

They slammed us with about $8,000 per landing.

There is no airline all over the world that can CONTINUED ON PAGE 36

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BUSINESSWORLD

INTERVIEW

ONYEMA: GOVT, INVESTORS MUST WORK TOGETHER TO GROW THE AVIATION SECTOR sustain such charge. That means they didn’t want us to come in, they are trying to protect theirs. So why should Nigeria allow all these foreign airlines unfettered access into our cities?

We have given unfettered access to foreign airlines and I urge government to look at the bigger picture and not the pittance these people are paying to the government in the name of passenger service charge. They should begin to look at the bigger picture, first of all these foreign airlines are carting billions of dollars out of this country yearly. These billions of dollars should have been channeled into doing other things if they are being earned by Nigerian airlines.

Do you agree with the observation that Nigerian aviation sector is more conducive for foreign airline operation?

I was shocked when I read that Ethiopia is trying to take over Arik, but the question is, on what basis? If you are bringing Ethiopian management to become employees of Arik, to help them run Arik here separately, the question is don’t we have enough people here to do it? The Capt. Roy Ilegbodu management is doing very well. They are trying to turnaround what they met on ground. We have capable Nigerians to run Arik; we don’t need Ethiopian airlines to come and run Arik. So if Ethiopian Airlines is coming as consultant and you want to send some of their staff to help Arik shape up, the question is, don’t we have people who could do that? The government appointed Roy and Roy is doing very well. So we thank the government for appointing him and we thank the government for resuscitating Arik. Roy is doing well and we don’t need any Ethiopia to come in.

In giving out management contract to Ethiopia to manage Arik, we should look at the consequence. We should not allow our country to be taken over by foreign airlines that have the sole intension to exploit our country and make profits. If Ethiopia takes over Arik Air tomorrow the economy of Ethiopia will depend on Nigeria; this is because they are going to be carting away billions of dollars to develop their own country because Nigeria is a huge market. So coming in here to buy Arik or take over Arik is not for cheap. I don’t care about how much Arik owes, if Arik owes N300 billion that is pittance to what these people are going to cart away. N300 billion is less than $1 billion, Arik is worth about $12 billion in goodwill and opportunities. Anybody coming to buy Arik should pay down about $12 billion, excluding Arik equipment; I am talking about the goodwill and opportunities.

So $12 billion should be put on the ground for Arik owner to take. This is because the next thing you will see is that they now leverage on the airline to develop international routes from Nigeria to their country’s gains. All these celebration of Ethiopia as a successful airline is because no Nigerian airline has succeeded. Most of their passengers are from Nigeria. Get good Nigerian airlines to start working tomorrow, nobody will be talking about national carrier again because they will see the failings of Ethiopia Airlines. It will go down like every other national carrier all over the world which has become a moribund idea. What Nigerian airlines need is committed support by our government.

Nigerian airlines operate under the harshest environment you can think of, but with the right support we can excel. Air Peace has shown that with doggedness, integrity, perseverance, passion and good management you can succeed.

And that is what we are doing, in Air Peace we know no tribe, no religion, no race, no creed, what we know is humanity in Air Peace.

And that has shown in all my employment, we have trained about 14 northern pilots in this country, we have trained Yoruba pilots, Igbo pilots, we have been employing people all over the country. If you come to Air Peace it is a mini Nigeria and they are all happy. So we should be supported to support our own economy. Ethiopian airlines coming here to take over Arik is not in the best interest of this country.

A stakeholder in the industry, Group Captain John Ojikutu, has accused Nigerian airlines of refusing to pay their charges to aviation agencies despite the fact they generate so much money. What is your take on that?

I believe there are certain people when you

Onyema

notice them over time, notice the kind of thing they say over time, it becomes unnecessary to give them the kind of acknowledgment they are looking for. What Mr. Ojikutu was saying is not true; it is absurd, bizarre and unfortunate. If I fail to respond to what he was saying, because he has been saying a lot of things over time; a lot of the gullible people in the society might tend to start believing him. How I wish that he could come and we have a debate on television on issues of aviation. It is unfortunate that he belongs to that organisation called Aviation Round Table (ART) that I respect so much, that has very prominent Nigerians who know what it takes to run aviation. People like Captain Dele Ore, Capt Porbeni, Elder Gbenga Olowo.

What in the first place makes him an

What I will advise the government to do first is that it must facilitate the establishment of a very good maintenance hangar that can do up to D-check and the whole world will be coming here to maintain their plane and we will be getting foreign exchange

expert? That during the military regime he was appointed the commandant as per being an Air Force officer, he has now arrogated to himself expertise that he doesn’t have because it is obvious he does not have that expertise he is claiming. If he has such expertise how come he was advocating indirectly the killing of domestic airlines just because you want to float a national carrier? The summary of his advocacy is that domestic airlines should be killed because you want to form a national carrier.

To start with national carrier is a moribund idea. British Airways is no longer a national carrier; America with their might in aviation does not have a national carrier. What the whole world is doing is called flag carriers because government has no business doing business.

Airline operation has so many avenues for leakages, no government can run airline very well. Me as the owner of Air Peace, not just the owner, I man the day to day running of my airline. I have not been able to stop the amount of fraud going from one end to the other because there are avenues for these, not to talk of an airline owned by government. So national carrier is a moribund idea, countries don’t do it. Nobody tells you how much South African Airways owes and it is subsidized by South Africa. It is the same with so many national carriers. Everybody is talking about Ethiopia Airlines but without government protection and support the airline cannot succeed.

But even government support is not enough.

Ethiopia has other things they are doing in aviation that is giving them money. Ethiopia has a very big maintenance, overhaul and repair (MRO) facility that many airlines in Africa and Middle East go to maintain their planes. So it is not the airline per se because if it is the airline alone it is going to crumble the moment Nigerian airlines start doing international operations. They lose that patronage and it will start affecting them, they will go down like any other national carrier. Then they will depend on other institutions they have set up in aviation like their MRO which Nigeria has failed to do.

What I will advise the government to do first is that it must facilitate the establishment of a very good maintenance hangar that can

do up to D-check and the whole world will be coming here to maintain their plane and we will be getting foreign exchange. Air Peace alone spends huge foreign exchange to maintain our aircraft overseas. None of our planes comes back with less than $3 million for every C-check because we are comprehensive whenever we want to do C-check.

This year alone we have sent about seven aircraft overseas for C-check; that is over $21 million from one airline alone. You could imagine if the hangar is situated in Nigeria.

If this money is domiciled here and used here the amount of jobs it will create. So we need a maintenance hangar, the government can support or bring investors; not the national carrier talk. So Ojikutu who claims to be an expert has failed in advising government properly on this. Was it not the same Ojikutu who said that domestic airlines should not be allowed to go international or do regional? I have never heard such talk before. That does not make any sense to me at all. People like that should not be given room to be airing their ignorance out there. So government should stop the likes of Medview, Air Peace, Arik and others from going to bring foreign exchange into our own country while at the same time allowing free access to international operators?

I am appalled and aghast by such comment.

So we need our own government to show support to us, to be proud to talk about Nigerian airlines. Let’s start talking about Nigerian airlines, let’s stop talking about Ethiopia Airlines. We have people in the north; south and every part of Nigeria that can make it happen and develop the economy of our nation. The air fares they pay within these African regions are obscene and mostly paid by Nigerians. The government is doing a lot, they have given us these rights and I thank the government for that but we have to go beyond that to make sure that these countries allow us to come in. If they give us $10, 000 per landing our government should be able to come back here and give them even $12, 000. You will see they will come down. We need to realise that government and the private sector must work together to build a virile and profitable aviation industry.

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BUSINESSWORLD

MARITIME

Demise of Nigerian-owned Shipping Companies Eromosele Abiodun posits that the federal government should take urgent steps to bail out Nigerianowned shipping companies and disburse the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund to avoid a total eclipse of the industry For several years, shipping has been recognised as one of the catalysts for socio-economic development. Shipping has since the ancient times, been at the fore front of opening up and connecting the world and thus is a major driver in the process of globalisation.

Specifically, container shipping has been both a cause and effect of globalisation. Container shipping is believed to be the world’s first truly global industry.

Container shipping could claim to be the industry which, more than any other, makes it possible for truly global economy to work.

It connects countries, markets, businesses and people, allowing them to buy and sell on a scale not previously possible. As a matter of fact, it is impossible to imagine world’s trade, and ultimately our lives as consumers, without container shipping. Shipping has led to a phenomenal growth in world merchandise trade, which has consistently grown faster than output.

In 2006, for instance, goods loaded at ports worldwide are estimated at 7.42 billion tonnes, up from 5.98 billion tonnes 2000. The value of total world export increased from $6.454 trillion in 2002 to $40.393 trillion in 2005, representing an increase of 64 per cent.

However, the reverse seems to be the case in Nigeria. It is on record that no fewer than 90 per cent of shipping companies owned

by Nigerians have either completely shut down their operations or barely struggling to survive.

Some of the indigenous shipping companies include: Equitorial Energy; Oceanic Energy; Morlap Shipping; Peacegate; Pokat Nigeria Limited; Al-Dawood Shipping; Potram Nigeria Limited; Joseph Sammy, Genesis Worldwide Shipping and Multi-trade Group all in Lagos; Niger-Delta Shipping in Warri, Delta State; and Starzs Investment Group in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.

Of all the companies listed above, only two can be said to be operating viable businesses while others, representing 83 per cent of the companies, are either completely dead or are in comatose.

Ironically, all the shipping companies based in Lagos are either dead or struggling to survive while the ones in Warri and PortHarcourt are thriving.

The companies, which the General Secretary of the Indigenous Shipowners Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Capt. Niyi Labinjo, described as “struggling heavily�, have mostly downsized and are operating with less than 20 per cent of the workers they had about two years ago.

THISDAY findings also revealed that all the companies are heavily indebted to banks and are mostly unable to service the loans they took to buy ships.

Labinjo, who is also the President of Al Dawood Shipping, disclosed that most of the ship owners have resorted to selling their landed properties to enable them service their bank loans, while others have lost prime properties to the banks.

The companies, sources volunteered, also owe their crew arrears of salaries ranging from six to 14 months, while some have sold off their vessels.

THISDAY also learnt that Genesis Worldwide Shipping, which was once seen as a thriving indigenous shipping company just four years ago, has completely gone under with not a single ship to operate.

The company, at its peak less than five years ago, had six ships.

The same fate has befallen Joseph Sammy Nigeria Limited with one of its staff members describing it as “almost dead.�

The only vessel left in the company’s fleet, MT Kemepade, was stolen recently. The ship was taken to a ship breaking yard in Ghana and the breakers were about to commence work on it before the owners found out.

The case is in court in Ghana.

CVFF Fund to the Rescue Piqued by the spiral effects of the death of

STATE OF NIGERIAN PORTS

Poor Ranking on Trading Across Boarders (Ports): 182 out of I85 Countries in World Bank Ease of Doing Business Ranking.

No. of Government Agencies in the Ports: 14 instead of 6

l Employment Potential: 800,000 industrial and 10,000 maritime new jobs.

Average timeline for clearing TEUs: 14 days instead of 2 days.

Revenue Losses: Over N1 trillion attributed to port ineďŹƒciencies.

Costs Attributed to Illegal Payments: About 50% import and 61% export processing costs.

Economic Competitiveness Index: 124th out of 140 countries in 2016 –World Economic Forum.

Delays: 71% of the time spent to import and 64% of the time spent to export are linked to delays.

Large GDP Size $478 billion, now 2nd largest in Africa

Ship at the Port

indigenous shipping due to lack of funds and unfavourable policies, maritime stakeholders have decried the federal government’s decision to warehouse over $100 million in the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) while its purpose suffers.

Speaking at a breakfast meeting organised by the Shipping Correspondents Association of Nigeria (SCAN) for public relations officers of maritime and related organisations, the Public Relations Officer of the Association on Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Dr. Kayode Farinto, said the problem was due to lack of patriotism. “Our indigenous ships will continue to die because of the fact that we are not saying the truth. CVFF ought to assist our indigenous ship owners with funds. The CVFF holds nothing less than N70 billion in an escrow account. What happens to that fund,� he said.

Similarly, the Special Adviser on Seafarers Affairs to the President-General of the Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Comrade Henry Odey, said that Nigeria was only able to rescue citizens trapped in Liberia during its civil war because the Nigerian National Shipping Line (NNSL) was still operational.

While stressing that cadets from the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron are half-baked, the retired sailor recalled that the NNSL, “had a training ship made for cadets, which carried cargo and cadets to give them sea-time.�

Faulting the new trend whereby the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) shuttles from country to country seeking assistance with sea-time training, Odey said: “How would you think that the other countries would like to train your cadets for you to compete with them? “It is shame on our country because we are doing nothing. Do you think you can go to The Philippines and ask them to train your cadets so that you can compete with them? I worked onboard the British ship, Dempsa, and if you were not a good sailor, nobody would employ you. But today, nobody

wants to care.�

On his part, the publisher of maritime daily, Ships and Ports, and Chairman, Board of Trustees of SCAN, Mr. Bolaji Akinola, noted that “indigenous shipping is dead.�

He blamed the situation on NIMASA, which he said, has lost focus on shipping development.

Akinola noted that NIMASA was now a money-making agency as its three per cent freight levy on ships has made it a big attraction for political appointments, adding that while CVFF grows in idle billions of naira in escrow account, MAN Oron continues to churn out ill-trained and ill-qualified cadets.

According to him, no fewer than 6,000 of those cadets are today stuck with their National Diploma programme because they could not get the required one year sea-time training to proceed for Higher National Diploma.

NIMASA to Disburse CVFF Fund However, the Director General of NIMASA, Dr. Dakuku Peterside has assured Nigerian ship owners that the agency is making frantic efforts to disburse the CVFF in line with set down regulations.

Peterside said the fund is with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) due to the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy.

He said that in line with its cargo support initiative for indigenous practitioners, the agency is already getting the support of the presidency to change the Nigerian terms of trade from Free-on-Board (FOB) to Cost Insurance and Freight (CIF).

But he lamented that many Nigerian ship owners are not ready to take advantage of the opportunity when it finally arrives.

Peterside identified lack of debt facility from Nigerian banks and high interest rates as major challenge confronting Nigerian ship owners.

He stated that NIMASA was ready to crash the interest rate in order to allow Nigerian ship owners compete favourably against their international counterparts.

According to him, “We are determined to disburse CVFF according to the law and

according to regulation. We are dedicated, we are committed and we are passionate about disbursing it. We would match the CVFF fund with some money coming from the financial institutions, this will crash the rate of borrowing, and that is why we are passionate about disbursing CVFF to bring our own funds to come almost at the cost of nothing and match it with their own fund coming at the rate of 25 per cent, the first thing that would happen is that the rate would crash from 25 per cent to a one digit interest rate. CVFF is lying at the CBN under TSA arrangement, we are working hard to disburse it, and it is over a hundred million dollars. “We are in talks with the CBN. We want to change the terms of trade from FOB to CIF, but how many persons are prepared for this regime? If we get NNPC to change the terms of trade and we are getting the support of the presidency, if we get it changed, how many of us are ready?�

Peterside said that the NISFCOE is apt because it would enable NIMASA meet critical private sector investors who would translate its vision.

According to him, NIMASA depends on private sector energy to set frame work and it is ready to partner anybody that has concepts that can change its story.

Also a former Director General of NIMASA, Temi Omatseye said that the Minister of Transport needs to be properly guided on how to draw attention of financial institutions to benefits of supporting shipping trade in Nigeria. He said changing the terms of trade from FOB to CIF would only require a presidential order.

On her part, a ship owner and former President of Trawler Owners Association, Mrs. Margaret Orakwusi said it is wrong for government to keep holding on to the CVFF fund. Rather, she advocates that the fund be used as seed money to set up a maritime bank.

According to her, “CVFF does not belong to the federal government. It is our money, the government is only to monitor it, but they are now squeezing life out of us.�

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BUSINESSWORLD

INTERVIEW

Saxena: Nigeria Has Prospects in Cleaner Gas, Cleaner Oil Mr. Akshay Saxena, is the Managing Director of Fynefield Petroleum, and is one of the major players in the downstream sector of the nation’s oil and gas industry. In this interview, Saxena says Nigeria should be alert to developing trends in the global oil and gas sector. Bassey Inyang captured the Excerpts: How would you assess the policies of the current administration in the country towards petroleum products marketers?

Well, we are lucky that we have a government that is keen on energising the oil and gas sector to drive the economy. The sector is a blessing to all of us because as long as you can cook your food, drive your cars, and charge your phones, you will consume energy. So far, I can say that the administration’s policies have been favourable, despite occasional hiccups here and there.

Recently, the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) visited the tank farms at the Calabar Free Trade Zone (CFTZ), on a fact-finding mission to establish the cause of kerosene scarcity, with a view to proffering solutions that would make the commodity available and cheap for the consumers.

What is your view on that?

Since the cardinal point of the visit was to ensure the right price of kerosene, and how the product can get to the consumer, and at a cheaper rate, it is important that we understand the system first.

Between the time of depot sales and distribution to the surface tanks owners, there are a lot of price differentials. The people who retail this product, DPK, are mostly surface tanks owners who sell in large quantity than fuel stations.

They are mostly house wives, little business women and men. They require between 5,000 and 10,000 litres of kerosene to stock up their tanks. So, they do not have such money to pay in bulk to suppliers.

But, the middlemen who have money to pay, and buy large quantity would end up getting some discounts from depots. They then go back to these retailers and charge huge credit from these surface tanks owners, and they end up hiking the price enormously.

And since the surface tanks owners get it in bulk from middlemen on credit; they have no option than to accept it. You now find a situation whereby a depot sells a litre of kero, for instance, at N135 to middlemen, and then they (middlemen) would end up selling at N200 to these surface tanks owners who also, in turn, would add N5 or N10 to make profit, thereby selling to end users at N210. This has been the case in the last two years. As government price increases, retailers also increase to remain in the market. This happens in relation to supply and demand theory.

Therefore, I suggest that government, through the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), should create a platform whereby the Micro Finance Banks can come into the picture, and take the position of these middlemen, who buy product and supply on credit and at exorbitant rate to surface tanks owners.

This will not only end up empowering Micro Finance Banks to fill up the gap, but would end up doing one of their lines of businesses, which is to provide opportunity for people at micro level to do businesses.

Besides, they would act as a bridge between the supplier and the end users. Besides, Micro finance banks would ensure that right pricing gets to them and put an end to transferring price from the depot to the end users. Under this arrangement, probably only transport cost, and a little interest is what the micro finance banks would charge the surface tank owners since the banks would be giving them some credit for some time.

But again, there should be some regulations by DPR to ensure that these surface tanks owners are actually real. They can have a data base and begin to improve upon the consumption battle.

Already, there is a drive or effort by government to ensure the actual consumption rate and importation level of DPK in the country. So, they can channel energies on the total consumption of the product.

Saxena From your experience as a petroleum marketer, what would you say are the causes of kerosene scarcity in the country?

One is the sources of receipt, which are through local refining and importation. NNPC has so far tried by ensuring that out of 10 million litres of DPK consumed locally, daily, they bridge it by 5 million litres while the other 5 million litres are imported. Furthermore, government has to come into the importation of DPK because it’s no more on CBN approved rate for importation as PMS (Petroleum Motor Spirit).

DPK has been ousted for a while. So, I suggest it should be brought into the same approval as PMS so that the importers can use the right Forex to transfer.

I suggest that government, through the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), should create a platform whereby the Micro Finance Banks can come into the picture, and take the position of these middlemen, who buy product and supply on credit and at exorbitant rate to surface tanks owners

If we use bank rate, the landing cost would become crazy, and there is nothing anybody can do because nobody would bring in a product at higher rate and sell at lesser price.

It is true that advanced economies are moving towards liquefied petro gas, cooking gas.

However, as we try to ensure that DPK is rightly managed, priced and not adulterated, we should look out at venturing into gas. There is a lot of gas flaring, and we are trying to explore that to compete with the growing market. The gas market is going to be a good venture for us.

How do you respond to the claim that one of the reasons why DPK is scarce is because often times, ATK (Aviation fuel) users also go for DPK when ATK is also scarce, because of the similarities of the product?

There was a report in the news media about something like that. But, I don’t know whether it is true or not. But, there are two sides to a coin.

It is important to understand the similarities, and differences in DPK. DPK means Dual Purpose Kerosene; so it has dual purposes. Though the two (aviation fuel, ATK, and Kerosene, DPK) are different. However, I do not know how people can engage in such practices. The truth is that before you bring in ATK, you must meet up with all government rules and regulations, which among others, include having a specialised tank farm and trucks for them. Besides, that there are several checks before it finally gets to the final consumers. And it has remained so; and I don’t think we have had incidences of air disaster associated with adulterated ATK. So, I disregard that kind of claim.

There is an evolving line of thinking towards the development of biodiesel in the industry, is downstream sector prepared to play any serious role in this aspect?

Yes, some key players in the oil and gas industry including us are exploring the option of biodiesel. Again, I am a member of Depot and Petroleum Product Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) and there is a lot of drive by the association to venture into this area. But for now, it is more of underground study. Certainly, we would want to develop along that because the next line in the industry is cleaner gas and cleaner oil. For instance, you see a society that is

cleaner; you see a lot of bio-fuel coming up in the market. There is a story making the rounds that in the next 15 years or so, there would be no more petrol-powered cars in Europe, and some other developed countries. I do not know how true that is anyway. You can see the world is moving at a dynamic speed. Therefore, it is important we catch up with that speed if we want to compete in the industry. As we all know, Nigeria has abundant resources of cleaner gas, so we have to take advantage of that.

What are the major challenges the downstream sector is facing now?

Nigeria has a lot of prospect in this industry going by my experience gathered so far. Again, Nigeria is a fantastic country for investment. I have been in Nigeria for about 38 years, and out of that, I have had a stint in the oil and gas for about 17 years now. Well not much has changed just as there are challenges. But, we look at challenges as an opportunity for better development in the sector. What has happened is that prices have changed drastically, and there is always cause and effects relationship. Some companies have flourished including Fynfield.

And it is because of hard work and sticking to the rules. There are some other companies that played against the rules, and they are no more in the business. I think the greatest challenge in the industry is consistency. Once a company is consistent and focused in policies and standards, it would definitely prosper. But, if consistency is lacking, such a company would not break even. My experience in the industry has been very huge and engaging. I had worked with NIPCO PLC companies that started off giving dividends of 35k, and jumped up to giving N4, and from revenue base of say N20million a year to N500 million in assets.

I also joined companies that started from ground zero, and we still broke even. I did not come from abroad to sit in the office. No! I have also worked as a loader, and as a logistics person in a company; I have pushed trucks out of depot. So, I have had various experiences in the industry, and that is what success stories are all about. Other companies I have worked for included Matrix Energy, Acorn, Capital Oil and Gas between 2010 and 2011 and now with Fynefield.

WEEKLY PULLOUT

WEEKEND Acting Features Editor: Charles Ajunwa Email: charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

LIVING | P31

COLLAGE | P36

THISLIFE | P37

FILE

SWEET INDULGENCE

ACTING EDITOR CHARLES AJUNWA / charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

28/COVER

15.09.2017

Sweet Indulgence Award-winning 20-year-old Mass Communication student of Babcock University, Rosemary Awoh, the last of three children to a renowned lecturer at the Industrial Design Department, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, is today the chief executive officer of Sweet Indulgence, an organic skincare enterprise and is making aesthetically unique products. She recalled how it all started in this interview with Mary Ekah people see my bar soaps, they ask, is this soap?

Some people don’t use it, I know friends that just buy and keep them for decoration to look at how beautiful they look. So I think it is the creativity that attracted people to my brand because it is different. Ordinarily you would not walk into a supermarket and see a bar soap that is so creative like mine.

As a student still in school, how did you find yourself in the trade and when did you start Sweet Indulgence?

I started last year December. I have always been a very creative person. I will call myself an artist. Growing up I used to draw and paint a lot.

But to me, art was not for me so I stopped. Later, I started getting so attracted to natural products.

I always wanted to spend money on natural things with no reasons. Then all of a sudden, I found recipes online and I took it upon myself to try my hands on those recipes and see what I could make out of them. The first time I tried it, it was really bad, the bar soap I made was so bad! But with time it got better and in less than four months, the skill was perfected. But I needed some attraction to it, I needed to get customers and so I decided to be more artistic with the way I moulded my soaps. So what I did was to make cake-like soap bars. I got some cake moulds and poured the liquid into the moulds and so I got soaps that look like cakes with flowers on top, while I also made some that look like sweets and so on, something very attractive and that is worth indulging in. That was why I named my business Sweet Indulgence.

You started by drawing and painting as a child and then you stopped. What then did you do at that point?

Right from my primary school, Yabatech Primary School, I would buy things from shops and I will take them to class and sell. I had this class teacher then, Mrs. Raji, she wouldn’t scold nor even beat me for doing that, rather she told the class that nobody should go out again to buy anything, they should start patronising me and that was how I realised the fact that I always wanted to be involved in business. It continued like that in secondary school, I will make beads, I will string it, will bake, take them to school and my friends would always want to buy. My life has always been like that.

I started a hair business because I loved getting involved in business right from when I was very small, I don’t know why. The hair business I was involved with was actually profitable. I was buying and selling imported hair extensions but along the line I realised that I was being supplied fake hair extensions because I was not dealing with the manufacturers directly and so I just had to stop and then I came up with Sweet Indulgence. And this has been my obsession for about six months now.

What was your very first experiment in making skin care products like?

I started production last year December and my very first experiment was my black liquid soap. It wasn’t hard to make that and later I moved on into making flower-shaped bar soaps. The first time I tried it was really bad and it didn’t even foam but the next time I tried it, it was better. It has got better and better every day.

Do you make just soaps?

I make both liquid and bar soaps as well as body butter – as in the cream you use on your body. I also make body scrub, lip balm and facial oil.

So what did you study at school?

I am still a student of Mass Communication at Babcock University; I am graduating next year June.

How have you been able to improve your skills in soap and body cream making considering the fact that you are studying Mass Communication right now?

Up till today, I have learned everything I do online. I tried a couple of times to go and learn from people but it didn’t seem like they were so interested in teaching anybody their trade. So I just went online and taught myself and today I am doing it better than they do.

What inspired you into going into this kind

Is your soap meant for black or fair people complexion wise?

It is for all skin type; that is why it is natural, all organic; anybody can use it and that is what I use. Sometimes I even get calls that ‘please, can I get whitening cream’? And I would tell them ‘I don’t make bleaching cream, it is strictly organic;.

Who are your targets?

My targets are from 12 years and above as well as the aging woman who want to clear herself of wrinkles. I am coming up with a beard kit; now there is this new beard gang and I get calls that please do you have something for beard, something that could make it grow. So before the end of this month I am already coming up with something for that.

Awoh

of business in the first place?

What inspired me to go into the business fully was the fact that I always got so many compliments for a nice skin. Initially I was making use of Ajali skin care products, these are handmade natural products because I am very fair in complexion and I just wanted to maintain my skin colour naturally without having to use chemical that will damage my skin. So when I started experimenting with my own products, I was still getting good compliments. I said then why can’t I also market mine if people are complimenting me so much.

It means it can also work for them since it has worked for me and that was how I started. I was using my friends for experiment for my black liquid soap and the feedback I was getting was so encouraging and right now I deliver my products as far as outside Lagos in the space of about six months. All my products are made with organic materials, there is no chemical added to them and these are what I use too. These products are good for all skin types.

How did you cope at the initial stage of starting up your business considering the fact that you are still a student?

After I was very sure I wanted to do this, I just took my mother to the market and was picking and picking all that I needed to start making my skin care products and she was just paying and paying. At a point she said she was not going to pay again. But I actually got enough to start with. So she was my financier initially. Right now I am independent because I have made a whole lot of money from my initial capital and I try as much as possible to sell my products at very affordable prices. Presently, there are no challenges but initially getting raw materials was tough until I discovered am online store where I order most materials for productions.

How would you describe your mother?

I think she has done great for herself and like the Proverbs 31 woman, she is a jack-of-all-trades.

She is an exhibiting artist, author of many books, event planner, cake baker, a fashion designer and above all, a lecturer of great repute with the Industrial Design Department, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos. She has a PhD. She had just her first degree when our father died 14 years ago. After my father died, she was faced with so many challenges, which affected her health but she has been able to scale through all the challenges through God’s grace and mercy; today she is a pastor with the Redeemed Christian Church of God. She has been so industrious for 14 years as a widow and by God’s grace she was able to make provisions for the three of us.

I am the last of three girls and the closest to my mum. I have been so aggressive to learn from my mother’s hard working and innovative nature.

So it is obvious that my mother has influenced me to start out earlier with my business at an early age. When I was growing up, there were times in my house that everywhere was just filled with cakes and so many other stuffs like hamper. My mum was always busy and when people asked what does your mum do for a living and I would tell them she is a lecturer, she bakes, she is a fashion designer, she is into event management and so many things. So she being a businesswoman, I also wanted to be a businesswoman by all means and that is what I actually love; so she inspired me.

Did your father’s death when you still at a tender age affect you in any way?

No, it didn’t. Many people would ask if I remember my father and I would tell them I remember everything about my dad. He passed on when I was six and I can remember the little memory we shared but hid death didn’t affect me in anyway, it didn’t even make me feel bad.

Let’s just say because I was small, I didn’t really know much about life then but now, it would have been nice if he were around to see what I’m actually doing now but unfortunately he’s gone but I know he is somewhere smiling and just clapping for me.

How well have your products done in the market?

Sweet Indulgence skincare products are doing so well that my products won me the 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year Award at Babcock University. The truth is that I haven’t really gone out to tell people to buy my products but somehow everybody knows that I am making skin care products and also the school authority got to know and so I was called for interview on a radio station owned by the school for three times. It got to a point that my VC had my photograph hang on the wall of his office because he feels I have made the school proud. The school took it a step further and did a biography on me and wanted to know how it all started, they couldn’t believe that somebody that is still in school will have the time to actually make all of these. After which a documentary was made on me on how it all started. So everything was in the documentary, how I moved from high school to secondary school and how I am doing something big like this, the skin care product, I am making it look different from the regular skin care products that we see. I think it is the creativity that makes me stand out because when

Apart from your mum, who do you look up to as a mentor?

There is this particular lady her name is Toyin Lawani, whenever I look at her Instagram page and watch her on TV, I wonder how she does do it because she has over 20 businesses in one building and a single parent. She is so encouraging, you can tell that she doesn’t even have time to go out and party or gossip with friends, she is just too focused, so she is my role model.

What is your vision for Sweet Indulgence?

I want to be a supplier to different countries, not just Nigeria, I actually got one order this year to supply in Denmark but they just have to get me registered and it is taking a lot of time.

So that is just one down and four more to go, I actually have five countries in mind.

How do you juggle between school and work?

That part wasn’t easy but I had to always make a large batch before going back to school.

We have a despatch company in my school so whenever anybody needs anything, I pick up from my hostel and take it to the despatch company and they deliver to them.

Does it distract your studies as well as your social life?

No, my business does not affect my studies because I pay someone to do the marketing; I don’t need to run around advertising, I get people coming to me instead so there is less stress. But it does certainly affect my social life.

I cannot remember the last time I went out to see a movie or even go out to do anything so I’m always focused on this every day. People call me to say, ‘let’s do go out but I tell them there is no time’, this is the only thing I focus on. Every single day I try to come up with new ideas, something attractive every single time, so there is no time to have fun.

What advice do you have for young ones?

I think that everybody is gifted with something; you just have to discover it. I didn’t even think I would actually go into this in the first place but upcoming entrepreneurs just have to realise that you can’t look up to other people, I can’t look up to Toyin Lawani and want to be like her, I am aspiring to be better than her. You shouldn’t copy another person’s product. I would have copied something like Ajali, but I just have to make it look better and different. I just try as much as possible to be better so they just have to know they have to be better. When I started I didn’t even have stickers, I didn’t even have a bag like this, so you don’t have to have that expensive branding before you can know that you can sell your products; you just have to start from somewhere.

29/XTRA

15.09.2017

Fidelity’s Strong Hand As the country continues to find several means of diversifying from oil, one financial institution is helping to strengthen Nigeria’s export industry through partnership and direct intervention, writes Mabel Benson On June 29, 2017 Nigeria exported 72 tonnes of yam to Europe and the United States from the nation’s premier port in Apapa. “Oil and gas cannot employ millions of people just like agriculture so, we must work hard to move from oil to earning foreign exchange from agriculture,” the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, said at the time.

The yam exportation was a landmark achievement because it represented a shift in the kind of products the country exports. Ever since the 1980s, when crude oil poured an avalanche of riches into Nigeria’s coffers, the country’s export system has been built around it. But with the decline in crude oil’s popularity as an energy source and the kind of economic shocks that hit the country if the prices go low, it has become imperative for Nigeria to diversify its export offerings.

“Just like we buy so much from them, it is time for them to buy from us,” Ogbeh said of the yam exportation scheme. “I assure you this is how the economy of Nigeria we are dreaming of is going to recover. The only challenge we may face will be the question of labour. The young men who make heaps are reducing in number because they are moving to the cities, riding ‘okada’ and looking for white collar jobs.”

The leading government agency leading the charge of export diversification and partnering with the ministry on the yam scheme is the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, which is responsible for regulation, promotion, recording and monitoring of export trade in the country. The agency is at the forefront of executing government policies and distributing incentives, as it relates to exportation.

However, government alone cannot be expected to drive the export campaign; the private sector also needs to get in the act. One of Nigeria’s top lenders and financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, is doing just that.

One of Fidelity’s most important tools for supporting the export industry is its Export Management Programme (EMP). Launched in 2016, the EMP is a sector focused capacity building programme run by Fidelity Bank in partnership with the Pan-Atlantic University and the NEPC, to deliver impactful, world-class export management education to aspiring and existing players in the Nigerian non-oil exports sector of the Nigerian Economy The programme, which prepare participants for effective play in the international non-oil export markets in particular and the larger

MD/ CEO, Fidelity Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo

export markets in general, has continued to raise the bar of capacity building in exports in Nigeria. Its unique curriculum is structured to take participants through courses bordering strategically on product development for export; developing linkages with customers in importing countries; understanding the various export processes, accompanying documentation and other requirements in Nigeria and key importing countries; export products storage; quality assurance, branding and packaging, sourcing and supply chain management, logistics and shipping, export finance, business ethics, and many others.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo, who gave valuable insights into the rationale behind establishing the EMP, stated that the financial institution remains highly committed to aiding the diversification of Nigeria’s monolithic economy particularly through import substitution and export promotion.

“We finance a lot of micro, small and medium

Participants at EMP4 at the Pan Atlantic University in Lekki, Lagos

enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria,” he said. “A number of these MSMEs have strong export potentials. It was therefore a natural fit for us to partner with the Lagos Business School (LBS) and the Nigerian Export Promotions Council (NEPC) to make this happen given in particular, recent developments in the global oil markets and the impact they have had on the Nigerian economy.”

In addition, Okonkwo emphasised the need to boost non-oil exports and build sustainable non-oil exports capability which he affirmed is now at the heart of the country’s diversification strategy. “Exporting not only improves foreign exchange (FX) earnings, but countries most successful in exports have stronger links to wealth creation, employment generation and sustainable poverty reduction.”

Four streams of the EMP have since been held since 2016 whilst efforts are in top gear to host the fifth stream (EMP 5) which has been scheduled for Monday, 25th September to Friday, 29th September, 2017. The imminent programme

comes heavily loaded as it is coinciding with the first anniversary of the EMP initiative which has uniquely positioned it to have woven around it, a number of the key activities already slated for the commemoration of this first anniversary of the programme.

EMP 5 will, in addition to its usual focus areas, also seek to shed significant light on key policies/ programmes recently released by government to boost non-oil exports and in particular, how intending exporters can take advantage of them.

Some of these recent policies include the Investors and Exporters FX Window announced by the CBN a few months back which allows exporters to sell their FX proceeds at market rates as opposed to the official CBN rate; the requirement for shippers to ensure that bills of lading in respect of exports from Nigeria carry the Form NXP number of the underlying cargo to ensure that all exports from Nigeria are carried out through the formal channels, etc. The highly regarded faculty of the EMP made up of renowned academics from the LBS faculty, relevant authorities from key governmental bodies that help drive exports, experienced hands-on exporters, and others will be on hand as usual, to do justice to all of the above and many more.

The reputation of the EMP as the go-to, mustattend focused capacity building programme for aspiring and existing exporters in the Nigerian market has continued to be attested to by testimonials from participants of previous streams of the programme. For example, Fidel Buchi Anyi, an EMP 4 participant said, “This is the direction banking in Nigeria should go-Giving before asking! Strategically helping small businesses before requesting for accounts.”

Speaking in the same vein, Etinighovwa Richard, another EMP 4 participant described the programme as “a very rich, enlightening and professional programme delivered by a world-class institution. I learnt the fundamentals of export management with regards to Nigeria and key foreign markets.”

In fact, Mr. Adesola of EMP 1 hit it quite strongly with his impressions. “The EMP is very informative,” he said. “It has saved me from potential pitfalls in my export business.”

On the back of all of the foregoing and many more, Fidelity intends to continue to strengthen the EMP in collaboration with its partners, to ensure it retains its strong position in the market as the platform of choice for capacity building in the exports area and is alive to celebrate many more anniversaries of its creation.

30/ NEWS

15.09.2017

Benin City to Host ‘Wake Up The Giant Literary Reality Show’ Mary Ekah Benin City, the capital of Edo State will play host to ‘Wake Up The Giant Literary Reality Show’, a show for youths in secondary schools within the ages of 11 and 18 years.

Tagged, ‘Wake Up the Giant Literary Reality Show: Edo Youths Got Talent’, the competition is being organised by Wake Up the Giant Educational Services and the Government of Edo State. It is a deliberate drive from Governor Godwin Obaseki to stimulate reading among youths in the state.

This competition, organisers say, will feature secondary school pupils with excellent literary and communication skills.

“Literary activities are almost extinguished in most secondary schools and unfortunately they are the vehicle for language development, quite apart from its relevance in the society. This is one reason the government is out to build the reading and writing culture in schools in order to produce youths who can express themselves as it is a sure way to development,” said the Chairperson, Stella Idowu Ebuetse, a seasoned educationist and PhD student at the University of Ibadan.

The preliminary stage in which 34 contestants emerged were carried out in the three senatorial zones of the state namely Edo North, Edo South and Edo Central. The judges were eminent scholars like Professor Egede, Dr. Oshioste and other seasoned educationist. The 34 contestants are expected to be in house from October 29 and would be there for two weeks after

Edo State governor, Godwin Obaseki to host Wake Up The Giant Literary Reality Show’

which winners will emerge.

The reality show will be different from other reality shows that the public are used to. Speaking further, Ebuetse said, “The literary reality show is for capacity building and the promotion of excellent character among youths, the need for vibrant academic pursuit through the culture of reading and writing.”

She noted further that reading, writing and communication remains one of the cardinal objectives of the competition as reading and studying to pass examination has become old fashion and the adage that readers are leaders is mocked among youths. “No wonder the calibres of graduates produced these days are nothing to write home about when it comes to communication, reading and writing. We expect to see youths in house who want to be different when they graduate from the University,” she added.

The reality show is one major instru-

ment to encourage youths to develop their mental capacity to become good leaders of tomorrow. The winners will go home with prizes that will assist them in their academic pursuit.

Ebuetse said further that with the current reading culture among youths in Nigeria, the bitter truth is that we may never ever have a replica of such great minds like Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Gabriel Okara, Sam Ukala, Ola Rotimi, Niyi Osundare, Cypian Ekwensi, J.P Clark, Ken Saro Wiwa, Chukwuemeka Ike etc, affirming that the reality show will bring to the minds of contestants the aforementioned writers who proved to the world that Nigeria is a land of intellectuals.

Ebuetse noted that the reality show will be a yearly event to redirect the minds of the youths towards reading, stressing that much attention will be on the youth that will emerge the winner as he or she will not be expected to lag behind in character and academics, adding “We expect quite frankly that the winner will stand out and also be a role model to other youths in the state.”

While advising youths in the state to cultivate the habit of reading one literature book in a day so as to sharpen their writing, reading and communication skills to enable them take part in the contest, Ebuetse explained that the competition is in remembrance and honour of the late wife of the immediate past governor of Edo State Mrs. Clara Oshiomhole who was admired in her life time for her unwavering interest for the youths.

‘Activating Success with Love Idoko’ Book for Unveiling Today Mary Ekah Love Idoko, the executive producer and host of the popular TV programme, “Activating Success will Love Idoko”, will be making history today as she will be unveiling the highly anticipated book which is a compilation of 100 episodes of her TV programme today, Friday September 15, making her become the first TV programme producer to document its first 100 episodes in a book.

The book aptly titled, ‘Activating Success with Love Idoko: A Compendium of the first 100 episodes’, is a 425-page book with inspiring and thought-provoking stories that will change your thinking.

Activating Success hosted by highly respected Love Idoko, made its debut on AIT, June 5th, 2015 and has played host to over 100 episodes with many of the episodes being exclusive interviews of important dignitaries from different fields and walks of life around the globe.

The book features the stories of top

Love Idoko on set with Nollywood actress,

personalities such as Dr. Mike Murdock, Omotola Jalade, Mr. Lanre Olusola, Hon. Desmond Elliot, Jackie Appiah, Innocent Idibia, Timi Dakolo, Cobhams Asuquo, Dr. Ubong King, Gbenga Adeyinka 1st, Alex Iziyon SAN, Uti Nwachukwu, Ali Baba, Solomon Lange, Pastor Goodheart Ekwueme, Bishop Noel Jones, Ayo Makun, Joseph Benjamin and lots more.

The book, which emphasises motivation as a major thrust, probes the different ‘successful’ public figures on how they made it to the top, the mistake before they ‘made’ it and how young people and the general public can succeed as well.

The unveiling of the book will be taking place at Transcorp Hilton Abuja. It will be an evening of inspiration and creativity.

The event will feature a red carpet, musical performances and numerous presentations from veterans and practitioners in the fields of sports, entertainment, business as well as politics, governance and the academia.

The event is powered by Dream Pointers International and supported by FCMB, AIT, The Dream Centre, Etcetera Productions, BBB Media and Treasure Suits.

Idoko has remained at the forefront of youth empowerment and development.

She was behind several events in Benue State and has gone on to establish herself as a leading event planner and publisher of the popular Motivation Magazine.

Adesua Etomi Comes to Cinemas with In Line

Adesua Etomi

Mary Ekah Nollywood actress, Adesua Etomi this September returned to the cinemas in Chinyere Ozoemena’s debut Nollywood flick titled ‘In Line’. The movie which held its media screening recently in Lagos was applauded by the media and personalities present for its intriguing story line and captivating performances.

Written by Diche Enunwa and Temitope BoladeAkinbode, the movie follows the story of an ex-felon Debo played by Uzo Arukwe who gets a second chance to be a loving husband to his adorable wife, Kate, played by Adesua Etomi, but is still a prisoner to his violent ways. This leads to series of events happening exposing the true natures of everyone from the lies, betrayal, hurt to love and more.

In Line combines an exciting blend of brilliant Nigerian and Ghanaian actors which includes Adesua Etomi, Chris Attoh, Tina Mba, Uzo Arukwe, Shawn Faqua, Sika Osei, and Lenora Okine among others, all of which performances were exceptional making this movie a must watch for everyone.

Speaking with the executive producer Chinyere Ozoemena at the screening, she said; “Being in there and hearing applauds, to me, it was everything because that was what I set out to do. It has always been about quality and that’s what this movie is all about.

Anyone who sees this movie should get ready to see something different. To watch something different from the typical drama, suspense and everything that comes with it. People should get ready to see a new level of twist, turns, intrigue, violence and more and no one can afford to miss it.”

Produced by Chinyere Ozoemena and directed by Tope Oshin, the movie tells the story of love, lust, and betrayal. ‘In Line’ is now showing across all cinemas nationwide.

Ibejii Debuts Great Sounds with Tasteful Party

Ebonyi Kicks Against Indigenes’ Indiscriminate Street Hawking Come Sunday September 17, the Ebonyi State Development Association (ESDA) Lagos will be embarking on a walk to protest the indiscriminate street trading and hawking, especially in Lagos State purported to be carried out mostly by the indigenes of Ebonyi.

With this walk billed to take place this Sunday in Badagry, Lagos, the association is making a clarion call to all well-meaning Nigerians to join hands together to fight against the act of street trading and hawking.

To this end, by Sunday September 17, the train will be moving to Badagry for a show that will change the lives and future of the Nigerian youths as well as the state and the human race. Take off time for the exercise tagged “Street Trading /Hawking Sensitization Awareness”, will be 7:30a.m from Ebonyi House, Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, Ikeja , Lagos.

A prominent member of the association, Emanuel Ndugo, noted in a press release made available to THISDAY that, “Research

Street hawking

conducted about a year ago shows that over 65/70 per cent of hawkers in most cities around Nigeria are from Ebonyi State.

And that out of every 10 hawkers on the highway seven are from Ebonyi and this menace in a great measure is causing the state a lot of embarrassment. The Lagos

State Government, some time ago, issued a law to commence total enforcement against street trading and street hawkers, saying that the law banning their activities across the metropolis would take its full course. “ Speaking further, he said, “I once went to help bail a victim and what I witnessed was appalling: apart from paying so much to get themselves out, they also lose their wares and sometimes contact different ailment. In fact you need to visit the Lagos State Task Force HQ Alausa or any of their offices to understand what our people are going through.”

“We are known for farming which happens to be one of the ways the nation is diversifying into and the state government is encouraging and supporting that course. We are therefore calling on every Nigerian to join Ebonyi State Development Association, Lagos to preach the gospel on the sensitisation programme around Lagos and its environs,” Ndugo, noted.

Ibejii

Recently, the crème de la crème of the media and music industries gathered for the listening party of Ibejii, the soulful lover man. Ibejii who was widely unknown until the late August release of not one but two albums entertained media giants with fine wine, hors d’oeuvres and tastefully curated music from both albums GreenWhiteDope 001 and GreenWhiteDope 002.

The eclectic music maestro arrived in company of 6 doppelgängers and introduced the music loving audience to his great sound as he took them on a journey of discovery through both albums. Ibejii also presented the video of Ojo as well as Kirakita and Alejo.

Among the A-list audience were Classic FM’s Shullzz, Beat FM’s Osi Suave and music editor of Pulse Nigeria, Joey Akan. This listening party experience is one that will linger long in the minds of all attendees with the exotic ambience created by Ibejii’s sound and his enigmatic appeal.

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‘I Want to Build an Academy That Will Drive Entrepreneurship and Develop Capacity in Make-up Business’ Deola Bakare is a graduate of Samuel Ajayi Crowther University. She is also a make-up artist with a special knack for aesthetics. Her foray into make-up business began during her NYSC days. Since then the dream has grew by leaps and bounds. In this interview with Ugo Aliogo, she speaks about the business and future dreams

Bakare

What is the name of your make-up house and what do you specialise in?

The name of the make-up house is Rella Makeover. I specialise basically in make-ups at differently stages such as carnival make-over, bridal make-over, bridal showers, traditional and essentially anything artistic. While I was in school, I did make-overs for people participating in drama presentations.

Why did you go into make-up?

I went into make-up because of my desired to look good and find out what works for me.

An individual might be in a particular career line, but that may not be what the individual is created to do. For me, I decided to decipher one special thing I would do aside from radio broadcasting. Then I realised that something artistic such as make-up would suit me. My foray into make-up began during my one year national service. During my NYSC year, I decided to engage in entrepreneurial skills while I was in camp. I was among the core facilitators who trained fellow corps members on hands entrepreneurial initiatives. Through this process, I realised that I had interest in make-up and I decided to push further. There were other options, such as hair styling, and shoe making, which I learnt. But I have realised that in life you cannot venture into everything.

While some pursuit will work out, others will not. What is important is your area of interest as an individual. For me, make-up was something I found very interesting. It is something I do with ease. I was never forced into it, I will never grumble when it involves make-up, even if I’m offered a little amount of money. So ultimately, it is the passion for the job that drives me.

In the make-up business, what efforts are you making to distinguish your brand?

Presently, I’m working on some certain initiatives which I will not like to make public.

I want my make-up line to be beyond just doing make-overs; I want to own an academy where I can build the capacity of young people in the business. I’m also in talks with some government officials concerning a partnership agreement. I’m also interested in entrepreneurship, while my company will be a co-facilitator to empower youths for free. Aside from being a make-up artist, I also want to run a company that specialises in event management, and decorations. In terms of entrepreneurship, I want to bring Rella Make-over to public awareness. The focus is for people to see the brand beyond just make-up. But a platform where they can explore and grow. I’m also planning on building a Non- Governmental Organisation (NGO). In line with this therefore, I have been working with some individuals in achieving this, but it is not forthcoming yet due to financial constraints.

What is your assessment of the make-up business in Nigeria?

The make-up industry in Nigeria is making progress. The industry is competing favourably with the movie and the music industries respectively. My reason for making this assertion is because sometimes we purchase foundation for make-up for 30,000 to 40,000. Some of us who are financially buoyant travel abroad to do master classes in order to improve our skills.

The industry has grown at such alarming rate that people spend as much as $1,000 to tie gele in the United Kingdom. While in Nigeria,

we have some artists who tie their gele for N10, 000 and N15, 000, while for the striving ones tie for N1,500.

The make-up business in Nigeria has come to stay judging from the new grounds we are breaking. It is a business capable of giving you as low as N5,000 when you do make-up for one client. You end up not using N5, 000 worth of products. Basically, I think why we go into make-up is because of the interest.

The theme of the make-up in Europe is focused on simplicity, while for us the focus is creativity. We are concerned about adding extra-creativity to raise our standard. The major difference between a make-over from the Western world and Africa is the culture behind us. Africans believe in core artistic work.

Whenever we do any artistic work we strive to put an understanding to it, while for Europe, they place emphasis on simplicity. I want to say here that we have been able to measure up with them, especially with our standards in the make-up game. The make-up business is artistic. What works for one particular individual may not work another individual.

Have you attended Master classes and trainings?

I have attended Master classes and training programmes. Master classes help to broaden your knowledge in the make-up business. It also helps to improve your skill sets in the business.

Where is your target market?

My target market is the youths. Aside from profit making, my desire is to build an academy to train young people about the rudiments of the make-up business. The focus will be

on secondary students, youth corps members and married women (who have the intention to grow entrepreneurial skills in make-up business). Presently, I enjoy patronage from those organising social functions.

What do you see as a challenge in the make-up industry in Nigeria?

We have a lot of challenges. The first challenge is mobility. Here, a lot of things are put into consideration such as transportation, logistics and cost of procurement. Therefore when a make-up artist charges a particular client a certain fee say N100, 000. The money covers transportation, and cost of procurement of materials. Also, the make-up products are expensive to purchase especially if you are buying good quality products. Again, the industry is very competitive here in Nigeria.

We have some key players in the industry who we believe they were the first set to venture into the business. Therefore their brand is a household name. Some of the leading names include House of Terra, Jaga beauty, and others.

As a result of their quality and track record in the business, they are sought after by many. For us who are up and coming, we are trying to find our space in the value-chain by ensuring that we take a leadership position.

What is the focus of Rellas Make-over five years from now?

The plan is that Rellas Make-over will be in five different states in Nigeria. It will be also be an international platform for people to reckon with. Beyond just make-over, the plan is to build an academy that will drive entrepreneurship and develop capacity in make-up business.

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Lucky Chibok Girls Mark Third Anniversary at American University of Nigeria Solomon Elusoji On August 25, 2017, the Chibok Girls Education Initiative at the American University of Nigeria (AUN) celebrated its third anniversary with an award ceremony. The occasion recognised outstanding achievements among the first group of 24 who arrived at AUN in 2014 and have been on automatic scholarship.

AUN President, Dr. Dawn Dekle and the Special Adviser to the Nigerian President on Social Protection Plan, Ms. Maryam Uwais, were among the special guests of honour.

Also called New Foundation School (NFS), the initiative started in 2014 to cater specially for the kidnapped Chibok girls who braved an escape from the captivity of Boko Haram. Eight of the initial intake have graduated from the NFS and are enrolled in AUN to pursue their university education. Among them are three in the University’s pre-med programme, Natural and Environmental Sciences, and two in Accounting.

AUN President, Dr. Dawn Dekle, presents a medal to a lucky Chibok girl

The rest are studying Law, Computer Science and Journalism.

There were awards for the most punctual, best behaved, the most outgoing, and the best public speaking student. For athletics, there

were awards for students in specific skills, as well as the overall best athletic participant. In the academics category, there was an award for the best student in every subject in both the intermediate and the advanced classes.

“I took special care looking at everything you have done, and I couldn’t be more proud,” said AUN President Dekle in her opening remarks.

“You really do live out our virtues of excellence, integrity, and service.”

The President said also that she would continue to work with the girls and to make the word “Chibok” become synonymous with positive virtues, with courage, integrity and knowledge.

“This year, I want you to work with me and everyone in this room to make Chibok the latest word in the Oxford English Dictionary. Do you remember when I said we are going to make it something else besides a village? C-Character, H-Honesty, I-Intelligence, B-Bravery, O-Openness, and K-Kindness.”

Uwais, on her part, noted that her invitation

was an opportunity to really get to know how AUN is transforming the girls. “I am delighted to be here. Moreover, I am very inspired by what I have seen….This is just an awesome experience for me….This is really a worthwhile endeavour and I am very hopeful that this is just the beginning for all of you….

You have come this far and you are going to go much farther because you all have some steel in you.”

Uwais said through the empowerment that they received at AUN the students would go on to do great things in life. She charged the young women to remain focused in their studies.

“Even though what happened to you should not have happened to anybody, I am a firm believer in ‘everything-happens-for-a-purpose’…

What has happened is that a vast opportunity has been created for you all here. I expect that you will take advantage of it and be true to yourself and your faith. And just reach out for the stars.”

Government at All Levels Urged to Develop Robust Justice System to Fight Sexual Violence Peter Uzoho and Mabel Benson Following wide spread of rape and other forms of sexual violence in Nigeria, government at all levels have been advised to develop strong justice system to tackle the social menace in the country.

The call was made in Lagos recently by a coalition of civil society organisations and agencies of government at a symposium/launch of an anti-sexual violence platform (Salvus), organised

by HACEY Health Initiative with support from the Stars Foundation Girl Award, EMpower and Access Bank Plc, with the themed, ‘Building conversations around preventing and responding to sexual violence’.

Speaking at the event, Director, Gender Development Programme, HACEY, Ms. Rhoda Rhobinson, said the organisation condemned in strong terms all forms of sexual violence in conflict, describing such actions as grave violations

Minster of Women Affairs and Social Development, Aisha-Alhassan

of human and peoples’ rights.

Robinson explained that Salvus, which means ‘safe’, was the organisation’s vision driven by unending brainstorming sessions as well as

burning urge to make Nigeria a safer and better place for all and sundry.

“Moreso, sexual violence is a broad issue in our society that needs all hands to be on deck in order to checkmate it. This is not just about us at HACEY, we have worked with different civil societies and government agencies to ensure that this solution doesn’t just combat sexual violence today, but remains sustainable to ensure this is not just a one-time solution," Robinson said.

According to her, Salvus is a web-based platform developed to facilitate safe and confidential reporting of sexual violence incidents and provides access to available comprehensive support service and relevant information. “The Salvus Platform hosts a database of sexual violence support service providers that survivors can connect to and receive the support they need.

“Basically, the platform seeks to: ease off access and secure transmission of information to service providers; dissemination of information on sexual

violence and support services to users, enable access to service providers required by users by sending requests to as many as needed on any number of support services they are in need of and pave way for service providers connecting and collaborating with each other to provide comprehensive care to survivors on the platform and share knowledge,” she added.

Also speaking, Director of Social Welfare, Lagos State Ministry of Youth Development, Mrs. Laide Latonwo, said more awareness needed to be created so that people would be more informed and take precautionary measures to prevent sexual violence in the country, noting that “information and awareness is a lot of power” in the context.

Latonwo revealed that one of the reasons why much victory had not been recorded in the fight against sexual violence was because of the societal stigma associated to rape and related cases.

Lending his voice, Senior Programme Officer

Legend Extra Stout Joins the Felabration Train Mabel Benson Nigeria’s fastest growing stout brand, Legend Extra Stout will be joining millions of Nigerians to celebrate the life and times of Nigerian’s foremost musical icon, the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti at this year’s Felabration.

The annual festival which kicks off on Monday, October, 9 will run for one week and end on Sunday, October 15; which coincides with Fela’s birthday.

This year’s festival is themed ‘The Prophecy’.

Felabration has been listed amongst the Fest300 Festivals 2017 (check and confirm this) and has grown into a huge weeklong musical event in Nigeria. The festival attracts thousands of visitors annually from all over the world to the New Africa Shrine and is an official tourist destination of The Lagos State Government.

Legend Extra Stout’s support for the festival

Fela-Kuti

is aimed at reinforcing the brand’s ideal and quality. The brand also hopes to connect with its existing and targeted consumers who will experience the unique bitter tasting stout in the

midst of the fun and excitement that comes with the festival.

The week-long event promises to be a season of excitement and entertainment, as Legend Extra Stout will bring its realness and uniqueness to Felabration.

Speaking on the brand’s presence at Felabration and its commitment to its consumers, the Marketing Manager – Mainstream Lager and Stout Brands, Nigerian Breweries Plc, Mr. Emmanuel Agu, said, “Fela Anikulapo is not just an international Music Icon, Fela made a difference in this world with his music and he left an indelible mark across the world. He gave us an exciting brand of music that was distinctively original.

“Interestingly, Legend Extra Stout is an exciting brand which strives to reach its consumers through invigorating platforms like Felabration. For us,

the festival is a season of fun and excitement and Legend Extra Stout has put everything in place to ensure fun seekers are relaxed, entertained and refreshed at Felabration.”

Since its inception, Felabration has been held every year with the exception of 1999. This year’s edition also marks the 20th anniversary of Fela’s death in 1997. Instituted by Fela’s daughter, Yeni Kuti, the festival will incorporate musical performances, an art competition, Afrobics Talent Hunt, Fela Debates, Symposium, Secondary Schools Debate and the Felabration Carnival.

Reiterating on the brand’s presence at Felabration, the Brand Manager Stout Nigerian Breweries, Oluseun Lawal stated that, “Felabration is a big contributor to Nigerian culture and entertainment.

Nigerians love their music and culture and Legend Extra Stout aims to meet its consumers where their interests lie.”

FEHN Charges Nigerians to Pursuit National Unity, Justice Trains IPOB, Arewa, Oodua members on non-violence campaign Ugo Aliogo, Omotayo Ajayi and Obianujunwa Ifediora The Chairman Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN), Mr. Ellen Onyema, has stated that national unity, justice and equity are key goals that Nigerians should pursue in order for the country to make progress in her journey of true federalism.

Speaking at the end of a five-day training on non-violence programme, organised by FEHN for members of AREWA, IPOB and other agitators, Onyema said there was need for the people irrespective of their divide to unite and pursue peace.

He also stated that conflict in itself is not too bad; adding that it can be a catalyst for

positive change and stated that if conflict is addressed the right way, it is capable of sparking up positive change.

Onyema further stated that the focus of the training was aimed at engendering ways of better ways of doing things, while promoting pan-Africanism which is expected to bring positive change to the country.

He however called on eminent Nigerians to play an active role in creating wealth in the economy through job creation, and empowerment of the youths, adding that this would help address various forms of agitations.

“One of the challenges facing the country is that the rich are investing their monies in other economies and providing jobs for citizens of such economies.”

The FEHN Chairman appealed to federal government to engage various groups involved in agitations across the country through Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), stressing that arresting agitators would increase tension in the polity.

He maintained that if the country needs to progress, the pursuit of peace and justice shouldn’t be left to the hands of government alone, stressing that all Nigerians have a role to play in contributing their quota.

In another development, the Chairman of Air Peace Nigeria called for citizen inclusion in the ongoing restructuring agenda, while urging parties pushing for restructuring to ensure that whatever decisions taken should bring about societal good.

According to him, “It is my belief that without peace there will not be any problem. We need peace and justice in this country and we cannot just leave it to government to handle alone.

You don’t need to be a President or Governor to contribute your quota to bring peace in the community. I’m doing this for the love of my country and ensure that she achieves its potentials.

We can only do this if there is peace and justice.

We are ready to create a new Nigeria.

“We are tired of the divisions amongst us as a nation. Any injustice we are facing as a nation has to be addressed. It cannot be allowed to linger on for a long time. I engaged Nnamdi Kalu and we discussed very well. On my part, I’m helping the federal government to engage these agitators to reduce the tensions already created.

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Promotion of the Non-oil Export, Nigeria's Fastest Route to Economic Growth - Akande Peace Obi The President, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Dr. Bisi Akande has called on governments and citizens of Nigeria to increase their efforts on the promotion of non-oil export. Akande noted that the nation's economic recovery and growth would be better and faster achieved should made-in-Nigeria goods gain more patronage.

Delivering the 18th Annual Bishop Mike Okonkwo lecture on a theme, ‘Made-in-Nigeria Products: The Vehicle for Sustainable Development’, the former Minister of Industry said that Nigeria's experience of a steady decline in the global oil price since 2014 and the subsequent decline in her foreign exchange reserves, recession, among others require a change in approach.

According to her, "the decline in crude oil price is beginning to change our development focus for good. We must, as a nation, take the right steps to reduce our reliance on oil.

"I have always been passionate about promoting made-in-Nigeria. It should continue to be a priority for the government. I believe with more patronage, Nigerian manufacturers will be encouraged to improve the quality of their products. And as the quality of our goods and services improve, local and international demands for them will increase. There is no doubt that the fastest route to grow our economy and to create jobs for our teeming population is by promoting non-oil export,” Akande said.

She further said that the made-in-Nigeria campaign should be an inward-looking strategy and a collective effort of all stakeholders towards addressing the current socio-economic challenges in the country.

L-R: Wife of Bishop Mike Okonkwo, Mrs. Peace Okonkwo, the Celebrant, Bishop Mike Okonkwo, the overall winner in the 2017 Mike Okonkwo National Essay Competition, Miss Alexandra Nwigwe, second position, Miss Jesuountan Mercy Ipinmoye and third position, Master Akingbade Gbenga

And that Nigeria should note that "for every foreign goods we buy, we are developing other countries’ economies while neglecting ours. Patronising our goods will boost employment generation as the multiplier effect of patronising local products is the demand of labour,” she posited.

Presenting his paper on the same theme, the Special Guest, Chief Eric Umeofia averred that no nation can develop without a strong industrial base that promotes the local production of goods and services consumed in that country.

According to Umeofia, "This is the singular difference between import dependent countries and countries that are industrialised and highly successful at promoting their local products.

"I call on Nigerians to have a change of attitude and stop the penchant for foreign made

products. Nigerians like to buy foreign made goods in and out of our country. How can we develop our own country to be better,” the manufacturer asked.

Earlier in his opening remarks, the chairman of the occasion, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, congratulated the convener of the event, presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr. Mike Okonkwo on his 72 birthday. Commending the clergyman for his various contributions towards nation building, Ohuabunwa said that the Bishop has carved a niche for himself in the annals of Nigerian history. According to him, Bishop Mike Okonkwo has become a household name that is associated with good courses. "He has continued to use the platform for his birthday to do good things like discussing critical national

issues. His foundation has been at the forefront of championing the course for Nigeria to be self-dependent. And this must be achieved by employing citizens with the right skills to aid national development."

The Chief Examiner, Mike Okonkwo National Essay Competition, Prof. Hope Eghagha, presenting the examiner's report for the 2017 edition of the competition, said that a total of 796 entries were received from schools across the country on the topic, ‘Made-in-Nigeria Products: The Vehicle for Sustainable Development’. And that after the first round of assessment by the organisers, 10 participants were selected and invited for the second stage. He said that the second stage was mainly a confirmatory procedure, meant to ensure that the first stage winners are indeed the authentic writers of the shortlisted essays. And with a total score of 80 per cent, Miss Alexandra Nwigwe of Vivian Fowler Memorial College for Girls emerged the overall winner of the competition. While Miss Jesuountan Mercy Ipinmoye of Corona Secondary School emerged second and the third position went to Master Akingbade Gbenga of Emerald High School, Lagos with a total scores of 72 and 70 per cent respectively.

The overall winner, Nwigwe smiled home with a cheque of N100,000, a laptop and a plaque, while her school got three sets of computers and a printer. The second position, Jesuountan was rewarded with a cheque of N75,000 and a plague and her school got two sets of computers and a printer. And Master Gbenga was rewarded with a cheque of N50,000 and a plaque and a computer set was presented the school while other winners were presented with a consolation prize of N20,000 each.

Kasapreko Rebrands ‘Alomo Bitters’ Solomon Elusoji The leading beverage manufacturer in Ghana, Kasapreko Company Limited, has rebranded its flagship product, Alomo Bitters.

The rebranding involves the re-packaging of the product in a new, stylish bottle with an hologram sleeve which provides a tamper proof seal of authenticity, mitigating against counterfeiting and ensuring the safety and purity of the product.

“Since it was launched in 1999, Alomo Bitters was in the same bottle,” Kasapreko’s Managing Director, Richard Adjei, said at a press conference in Lagos announcing the rebranding.

So, according to Adjei, the rebranding was designed to appeal to more customers and give the product “a more premium look.”

However, he stressed that despite the new look bottle, Alomo Bitters’ content, “an invigorating blend of herbal extracts from carefully selected and scientifically researched tropical plant extracts”, remains the same. “We say thank you to all our customers for their patronage,” he said.

As part of the rebranding process, Kasapreko also introduced a new 30ml satchel of Alomo Bitters, to increase access to the product and launched a campaign theme ‘Confido’, which plays on the word ‘Confidence’.

Alomo Bitters, which is a herbal liquer made from carefully chosen tropical medicinal plant extracts, was conceived by Kasapreko’s Founder, Dr. Kwabena Adjei in the mid 90s. In 1995, he approached the Centre for Plant Medicine Research in Ghana for a collaboration into the

L-R: International Business Director: Kasapreko Company Limited (KCL), Clarence Amenyah, Managing Director, KCL, Richard Adjei, Finance Director, KCL, Emmanuel Teiko and Consular General, Ghana High Commission, His Excellency, Maxwell Awianga, during the launch

Muson to Stage its 21st Music Concert Adedayo Adejobi The 21st MUSON Festival of the Arts, 2017 starts on the 18th of October with MusicQuest/ Youth Concert. With several young musicians are constantly emerging in Nigeria, the annual MusicQuest is a way of showcasing and encouraging these talents. The youth concert is a competition that provides a platform of self-expression for these young budding artistes. This platform is also MUSON’s modest contribution to the national effort at discovering and nurturing of our youths. Wednesday, October 18 will flag off the final phase of this competition. There are three categories of Pianoforte, Voice and other Instruments. Apart from being a competition for attractive prizes, it is also a concert of very interesting musical selections. The MusicQuest is partly sponsored by Stanbic IBTC.

Its unique personality programme, My Kind of Music, is scheduled for Thursday, 19th October. As usual, guests will be taken on a musical journey through the memories, experiences and life philosophies of a member of the diplomatic community in Nigeria and a great friend of MUSON, Mr. Ingo Herbert, German Consul-General and three Nigerians who have distinguished themselves in their chosen areas of endeavour: Mrs. Opunimi Akinkugbe, CEO Bestman Games; former Banker, Mrs. Bolanle Austen-Peters, Lawyer and CEO BAP Productions and Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, Managing Partner SIAO and Pastor-in Charge, Trinity House.

This year’s Chevron Festival Drama is The Engagement written by Sefi Atta. It is about “a family at odds on the day of their daughter’s traditional engagement ceremony” It will be staged at the Agip Recital Hall on Saturday October

21 by the Jos Repertory Theatre, directed by Dr. Patrick-Jude Oteh. The Chevron Festival Drama has been sponsored since 2001 by Chevron Nigeria Limited.

The TOTAL Festival Gala Concert on Sunday, October 22 will feature the 45-man MUSON Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the virtuoso Visiting Conductor Walter-Michael Vollhardt and the 40-man MUSON Choir, conducted by its veteran Conductor, Sir Emeka Nwokedi in a combined performance that promises to live up to the reputation of the TOTAL Festival Gala Concerts. The TOTAL Festival Concert has been sponsored since 2002 by Total E&P Nigeria Ltd. According to Chairman, Festival 2017 Planning Committee, Arch. Kitoyi Ibare-Akinsan “This year’s MUSON Day is scheduled for Wednesday, October 25. This event is a special members’ day, set aside to mark the founding of our Society.

This celebration, featuring a concert followed by cocktails, also serves as an interactive forum for members, their friends and families. For the first time, this year’s programme will feature a special ceremony during which new members will be formally welcomed into the society. This year’s Jazz event is scheduled for Friday, 27th October. It will take the form of a Jazz Party organised in collaboration with the Winehouse Jazz Family. It will be an evening of Jazz music and partying to the music of the Winehouse Band, the MUSON School Jazz Band and guest artistes.’’

The 21st MUSON Festival will come to a close on Sunday 29th October with an enthralling performance of the Opera: La fille du Regiment by Donizetti, directed by Nigeria’s ace Opera Singer, Teacher and Director, Joseph Oparamanuike.

ACCOBIN Celebrates a Decade of Pioneering Interdisciplinary Compliance in Nigeria The Chief Compliance Officers (CCOs) of banks in Nigeria will from Saturday September 16-23, 2017 mark its 10th year as an association with a week-long event.

The highlights include ‘Walk Against Corruption’. The Walk Against Corruption would begin from the Lekki Admiralty Toll Gate and terminates at the end of the Ikoyi New Bridge.

This walk is expected to attract all the critical stakeholders in the fight against corruption, money laundering, terrorist financing and all other illegal and criminal activities in Nigeria.

On Tuesday, September 19, 2017, there will be a Career Talk Day for students of secondary and tertiary institutions. Our aim to catch them young, help direct them on the need for the ideal career choices of the future- Compliance.

In a bid to create extensive awareness, engender interest, knowledge and desire to know about relevant compliance issues as they affect the Nigerian Public, Wednesday, September 20, 2017 is slated as the Compliance Awareness Day. “We shall be visiting select media organisations to raise the consciousness of Nigerians about

the negative and debilitating effects of crime, money laundering and terrorist financing on the economic, social and political stability of the nation.

With Theme ‘The Impact of Technology in Managing Compliance Risk in Banks’, Eko Hotel and Suites will on Thursday, September 21, 2017, play host to us, as we deliberate on emerging and contemporary issues in AntiMoney Laundering / Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance in Nigeria through a workshop with international and

renowned subject matter experts expected to make presentations. On the same day, officials of the Association will do the honour of ringing the Closing Gong on the floor at the Nigeria Stock Exchange.”

The 10th anniversary will culminate on Saturday, September 23, 2017 as the Gala Night holds. In the Grand Finale, distinguished individuals who have contributed to the growth and sustenance of the association and the culture of compliance generally in Nigeria will be honoured.

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Anambra 2017: UPP Begins Journey of the Tiger Mabel Benson writes that the United Progressive Party has taken bold steps in its quest to produce the next governor of Anambra State after the November 18 governorship election “The tiger caresses its cobs with its powerful canine but tears down the enemy with the same powerful canine.”

With these poetic, but impactive words, Chief Chekwas Okorie, founder and National Chairman of the United Progressive Party (UPP), handed over the three instruments with which Chief Osita Chidoka, commenced the journey to capture the number one job in Anambra State via the November 18, governorship election.

Okorie explains: “The journey he is commencing now and what we have is the journey of the tiger. He looks every inch a tiger. He will protect the assets of Anambra people. He will make Anambra develop, jobs will be created. But the enemies of Anambra, beware. The tiger is the king of the jungle.”

The instruments included the Certificate of Returns, from the party declaring him the rightful winner of the primaries that took place on August 19, in Awka, Anambra State, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), form CF-001 and the INEC nomination form.

The ceremony, which took place at the party secretariat in Abuja, was witnessed by its bigwigs amid a substantial dose of pomp and ceremonies, as would are usually expected and witnessed in any of such gathering.

Before the formal ceremony, the party boss, had appealed for a level playing field in which the people of the state would be allowed to vote in a candidate through a transparent process, devoid of any form of inducement or arm-twisting.

In this regard, two agencies, INEC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) would have to brace up for the challenges, with the former ensuring that the situation which allowed for ballot box snatching and other crooked means of skewing the process, would be eliminated, while the latter would ensure that the influence of money would be removed.

Hear him: “I wish to appeal to the Independent National Electoral Commission, to please, comply with the promises they made to political party leaders, the promises they made to media chiefs which they assembled differently, the promises they made to pro-democracy and donor agencies and that is that the Anambra governorship election will be conducted with an upgraded card reader that will transmit results direct from the polling units to the central server.

“That was the promise that was made to all of us. And it was demonstrated before us and we all acclaimed it, acknowledged it and applauded it, because for the first time, the ordinary Nigerians, the voters, the electorate in Anambra State will be granted the opportunity to indeed choose who their governor will be.

“Once that is done, we are home and dry.

Then, I wish to also recommend, if only for the Anambra election, the EFCC should be part of the monitoring team. I say this because, in 2013, we were also in that governorship election in Anambra State.

“We saw people carry sacks of money close to polling stations and were paying N5,000 they induced to vote for a particular political party.

But when the attention of the police was drawn to this anomaly, the police, who had obviously been compromised, said that they were invited to maintain law and order and were not invited to chase people who were carrying money.

“Because, there is a limit to the amount of money anybody can carry at a particular point in time, and that falls within the purview of the EFCC, I therefore recommend that the EFCC should be incorporated into the monitoring agencies, so that these malfeasances and perfidy will not be allowed to repeat itself.”

Chidoka, himself, was no less upbeat at the prospect of winning the election and taking over the governorship of the state, which is seen in certain quarters as the cradle of Igboland, which he said had left the Igbo people groping in the dark, as a result of poor leadership.

The former Corp Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and Minister of Aviation, believes that UPP presented the most credible option towards calming the frayed nerves arising from the massive discontent in many parts of the country, giving rise to seeming uncontrollable agitations, particularly the South-east.

His take was that the grievances of the Igbo people, could find expression through a credible political party, capable of articulating all their misgivings and presenting them on the table at

Chidoka

the national level and bringing back the right feedback that would enable the two entities strike a balance and thus eliminate or the grey areas that have allowed the mutual anger and suspicion, currently troubling the polity.

He was particularly peeved at how the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), originally formed by Okorie as the vehicle to convey this process, crashed woefully on the hard rock of personal interests and lack of commitment.

His words: “In 2003, Chief Chekwas Okorie founded the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) on the idea that all the grievances of ndi-Igbo would be channelled through a political party to engage the rest of the country.

Unfortunately, that dream was betrayed. APGA became an electoral vehicle meant for the election of people whose desires and interests are the maximisation of their personal capacity and the denunciation of the people. That is why today, APGA as a party, has no position, neither does the government of Anambra State, on the agitation for the actualisation of Biafra by ndi Igbo. They have no position on the issue of restructuring of the country. They have worked with PDP and they are willing to work with APC. APGA as a party is adrift and we want to send it to its final funeral, and on this mission, we have the full backing of the Anambra people.

“And the reason why we have to do that is because we want to help Nigeria as a country to re-channel Igbo anger, to re-channel Igbo energy towards building a nation that works for everybody, towards building a country that accommodates all, towards building a country that all the constituent parts are able to join freely to build a great nation.”

To put his plan in clear perspective, Chidoka, told the audience that he would not only build the Anambra of the future, in which the people would be fully integrated into the generational terrain of knowledge economy erected on which hi-tech capacity and information technology platform, but that which recognised the major attributes that made the Igbo the driving force of Nigerian economy and a reference point internationally.

Hear him: “I want to send a message today to the people of Anambra State. Number one, Anambra State is about to start a new beginning.

The journey of this tiger is the journey of a new beginning; a new beginning that will make sure that Anambra State is truly the home for all, in Nigeria and in Igboland, a journey that will make it possible for Anambra people to come back again and own their state. No more shall Anambra people be voting for people who are sponsored by forces who are not the people contesting the election. No more shall Anambra State be ruled by people whose major interest and whose efforts in the state is to line their pockets and the pockets of their party members. But more importantly, no more shall Anambra State be ruled by an ideologically vacuous bankrupt and backward party, but by the known ideology of our people, the ideology of Ndigbo, the ideology of uche, of uchu na egwu chukwu, the ideology of the restoration of our homeland, the rebuilding of our capacity as a people; the ideology of self

determination and right to determine our role in Nigeria, the ideology of building a nation where no man is oppressed, the ideology of re-enacting our people’s hopes and aspirations, the desire to be part of a country where they are recognised as a free constituent of the country and where they are not relegated to being a mere 5 per cent and 95 per cent.

“Let it be known that today, the United Progressive Party has come to restore the Igbo voice in Nigeria. The United Progressive Party, has come to give hope to our people. The United Progressive Party has come to end the cries emanating from our people.

“So, the election in Anambra is not a referendum on the failed government that is existing in Anambra, it is a referendum on our future and I stand here today to say that any vote for UPP is a vote for the future of ndi Anambra, is a vote for the future of ndi Igbo.

“Of course, no more will it happen again that the maternal mortality, as it happens in Anambra as it is growing in Anambra. It is a national scandal that a state with the smallest size outside Lagos, is still talking about building 200 kilometres of roads and three flyovers. No more will happen again that out children will travel long distances to attend primary schools and secondary schools and that our public schools are in retreat, while private schools of questionable quality are in ascendency in our state.

“No more will it happen again in Anambra under my watch that our idea of security is the diversion of billions of naira in pursuit of a security system that nobody goes outside by 7p.m. If Anambra is truly secured, our night economy will begin to flourish. Our first task as governor is to make Anambra a 24-hour economy; to build a security system that will make it possible for industries to have three shifts a day, to triple the economy that is already existing in the state and to make it possible for our people to engage and to be employed fully.

“Our greatest resource is our human beings and I promise Anambra people that I will build infrastructures for the new economy; infrastructures for the IT-led development, the infrastructure that will make Anambra the home for those looking for people that will be programmers across the world, that will develop websites across the world, that will do call centres across the world. The economy of Anambra will transcend the economy of Nigeria.

“Our economy as a people is bigger than our geography. We will not be constrained by our geography. We will not be constrained by the forces that have held us down before. For, we will go out to meet the world, not with anger, not with just agitation, but with knowledge and pride in our heritage.

“I want to assure our party today, particularly the National Chairman, the National Working Committee, and the state chairman that the trust reposed on me, that I will fly party flag, I will fly the banner of service and I will hand it over without stain to those that will come after me.

“The banner that I have collected today is a banner for a new generation, is a banner for a new beginning, is a banner that will do away with all that is wrong with us and promote all that is right with us. It is a banner that will question the history that makes a people who are renowned globally as hardworking people, but who in Nigeria, are struggling to exert themselves in what we do.

“Therefore, I step away from this room today, energised by the flag that has been given to me by my party, encouraged by the support of the teeming people of Anambra State and emboldened by a generational challenge to interpret Nigeria to ndi Igbo and to interpret ndi Igbo to Nigeria.”

Indeed, the former minister, has not hidden his disdain for the incumbent governor of the state, Chief Willie Obiano, whom he accuses of not providing the needed political leadership for the people in the same manner he had failed woefully in the provision of infrastructures.

That the governor, had maintained a rather passive posture or even appears quite comfortable with the apparent poor treatment given to the Igbo people, in the current political equation in Nigeria, instead of speaking out boldly seems to have peeved him to no ends.

“Our people have had enough. Ndi Anambra cannot continue to be under a government without a conscience and a sense of responsibility towards

the people; a government that has over time failed to stand up for the people when the occasion demands, yet continue with impunity.

Our people are our greatest assets and deserve a government that upholds their interests and values,” Chidoka explained, recently, while inaugurating his campaign office for Orumba North and South in the state.

In fact, there seems every reason for the former minister to flaunt his bragging rights over the current issue in Nigeria. Not only has he stood up to be counted on the side of the vocal voices seeking for the Igbo man in Nigeria under the government of the All Progressives Congress, led by President Muhammadu Buhari, he has gone further to take ownership of the raison d’etat for the formation of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), Biafran Independence Movement (BIM) and other groups, which is self-determination.

Though he seems to favour the Biafran of the Spirit, which is the late Ikemba Nnewi, Chief Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu settled for before his death, as different from the Biafra of Territory, which the separative groups are advocating, the fact that he has stood up to canvass for the major content imbedded in the two at a time when others see the issue as a no-go area, is indeed a credential he could present at the right time.

Certainly, Chidoka, it was, who practically went to Kuje Prison in Abuja, to drive home the leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, after he was granted bail by Justice Binta Murtala Nyako of the Federal High Court, Abuja.

This was a time only few Igbo personalities seemed to find the courage to whisper the name of the IPOB leader, let alone identify with him in public. That the South-east governors, including Obiano, have always shown the penchant to drop the subject of Biafra like hot potatoes at a time their Ekiti State counterpart would openly attend a court session to identify with the likes of Kanu, underscores the courage of Chidoka and the few like him in Igbo land and across Nigeria this regard.

That is why for Okorie, the November 18 election is already won and lost, because it would not be fought on the basis of mere sloganeering or bogus claims of performance, but on the basis of the prevailing sentiments in the state at the moment.

Hear him: “I can tell you, as a matter of fact that UPP is contesting against UPP in the case of Anambra. We only have ourselves to beat.

What that means is that we can either win or lose based on how we take advantage of what has happened. Now, APC, made itself an enemy. Nobody declared it an enemy party. It made itself an antagonist of the entire Igbo race in Nigeria. There is not a single APC leader that has had the moral courage or gumption to tell even their President to say, look, the treatment you’re giving to these people is very, very unfair.

“So, it becomes to the Igbo people like an APC policy to do them in without any scruples.

So, I don’t know how any rational Igbo person, who is of voting age, will leave his house and go to the polling booth and cast his vote or her vote for a party that has made life so miserable for them. So, APC is not in contention there.

“Again, Anambra, from their political antecedents, I can tell you, is the most politicallysophisticated electorate that we have, not only in the South East, but in Nigeria. I give you instances. When every other state voted NRC, Anambra voted SDP. And the flagbearer then, who became governor, was Dr. Ezeife, a retired civil servant, who was not a money person. When every state voted PDP, Anambra voted APGA overwhelmingly. In spite of the manipulation, Anambra still recovered it through the tribunal, because the evidence was overwhelming.

“In Anambra, billionaires have contested elections and lost. In fact, there has been no billionaire that contested election in Anambra State and won. Like some people think that the Igbo is where money goes, but tell me one billionaire that has contested election in Anambra State as a governor and won. None.

Andy Uba lost, Ifeanyi Uba lost, Soludo lost.

None of them. Ngige didn’t win. He was rigged in even though he was not a billionaire, but he was sponsored by a billionaire family. And he lost at the tribunal.

35/XTRA

15.09.2017

King’s College Old Boys Celebrate another Milestone The King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) has made it a tradition to celebrate annually in September, the founding of its good old school. This celebration is no doubt, the most anticipated event in the association’s social calendar and it is usually a great time for the old boys to catch up and interact as they hold various events.

Writes Mary Ekah The King’s College Old Boys’ Association (KCOBA) annual “Kingsweek” celebration is first of all unique in the sense that it signifies that the association as a group and then the school as an entity have been able to scale through another year. The anniversary, to members of KCOBA, is so significant in the sense that there are many associations that have died over the years but King’s College as a school has been in existence for 108 years while the association as body has been in existence for over 90 years.

So it is significant that a hundred years after, King’s College is still standing strong while the association is also waxing stronger year by year.

These no doubt call for great celebration each year.

To this end, the King’s College Old Boys’ Association kick-started its Kingsweek 2017 events with the celebration of Captain Adegoke, a Trustee and General Secretary Emeritus, who turned 70 on September 3, this was closely followed by Tayo Aluko Live in KCL: An Evening of Music and Drama celebrating Tunji Sowande, KCOB, Britain’s first black Nigerian judge and celebrated Concert Singer held on September 7 at the Muson Centre, Lagos. While other events scheduled to hold from Wednesday, September 20 to Sunday, September 24, follow up sequentially, amongst which are the Founder’s Day Lecture, billed for Wednesday September 20, a Jummat service on Friday September 22 at Syrian Mosque, Ribadu Road, Ikoyi, Lagos; Founder’s Day Dinner on Saturday September 23 as well as an Annual General Meeting on the same day and then followed by a Thanksgiving church service on September 24.

The Vice President KCOBA, Rotimi Aladesanmi said, that every annual celebration of the Kingsweek is unique in its own way, adding, “Each year we have different guest speakers that speak on different topics. The topics we had last year will be totally different from this year, most especially this year, we are incorporating novelty cricket match because cricket is our school sports and interestingly the president of the Cricket Association of Nigeria is an old boy, so also is the chairman of the Lagos State Cricket Association. So we are having a cricket match between the KCOBA team and the Lagos team.”

Aladesanmi revealed further that KCOBA will also hold a family fun day during the anniversary where old boys will come with their family members and mingle with invited guests.

“We are also inviting guests to participate and interact with us. We believe that is going to be very interesting because we are also trying to focus on family, which is the basic unit in any society. And a society that does not encourage the cohesion of the family is doomed to fail. And we have seen that the Nigerian society is not paying much attention to the unity in the family and likewise to the unity in the nation. So the bedrock of any society being the family, should not be neglected and that is why we are having a family fun day to encourage healthy interaction in individuals families and we believe that apart from the other activities which we normally have over the years, this aspect of family interaction is going to be another interesting feature of our celebration,” he noted.

Speaking on how the Association has impacted on the socio-economic phase of the nation, Aladesanmi said, “The association comprises old boys from different cadres and generations. The college was started in 1909, so you can imagine how many old boys it must have produced and I think the oldest old boy now should be 98 years old, that is Justice Ishola Oluwa and so we have from judiciary to every aspect and each one of them has held unique position and have contributed in positive ways to the development of the generations of Nigerians.

In politics, we have Dr. Alex Ekwueme who became vice-president of Nigeria. But what is clear is that King’s boys are people that could be emulated and we always try to be trailblazers so that we try and do things that others will follow. So yes, we have contributed so much to the socioeconomic aspect of the nation and

Member Kingsweek Committee, Ohios Unuigboje; Sports Secretary, Ikhane Akhigbe; Vice President, Rotimi Aladesanmi and General Secretary, Lucky Idike at a press briefing in Lagos

we are still contributing. Even as we speak, we have intervened in the affairs of the students and we have tried to mentor them because we have realised that the generation of nowadays need mentorship and guidance, which can only come from people who have seen it all. And so we have old boys come to give them talks in the college on career, business and many other things, so we have been kind of guardians to them in forging ahead in life.

Aladesanmi, who said this year’s celebration is not particularly focused on a specific theme, noted however that the anniversary will be focused on unity, adding, “King’s College is a school that encompasses people from all over the country, and even from different parts of the world, and also from different backgrounds coming together as one entity. And we have tried over the years to ensure that we maintain that unity and that is why we are encouraging family interaction, the games and all that. So unity is the theme behind all these activities and also behind the college.“ “This is about the school’s 108th anniversary and the association has been growing from strength to strength and at the moment, we have different branches with a major branch in North America, based in Washington, USA, we also have a branch in London, UK and we also have branches in Abuja, Kaduna and we are trying to get the one at Enugu to take off. And then we have chapters scattered all over Nigeria, and these chapters are for the younger boys in the universities or any other educational institutions.”

For the Sports Secretary, KCOBA Executive Committee, Ikhane Akhigbe the King’s College ‘Kingsweek’ is an annual celebration to sum up the events of the last one year and also to let members know what plans the association has for the coming year.

He explained further that, “We have the annual King’s Dinner, which is our flagship social event and we also have our AGM where we elect new members into the council. So every two years, we elect our council members and this year is a year for elections.”

"Generally, the occasion is usually an avenue for the old students to have some presence to get to know what is happening in the school and how the school is being run as well as to note and discuss on events concerning KCOBA”, he noted further.

He said that although the event appear to be

same every year, there are always occasion to differentiate the celebration in the previous years, adding that it is always an occasion to celebrate the association as it grows in number and age yearly. Beyond that, Akhigbe explained that each year’s event afford the association the platform for exposing and expressing what it has done and what it also plans to do in the coming year.

“King’s College is one of the important academy institutions in Nigeria and has a very long history of consistency, engagement and advancement of discussion, policy and the rest of them. So the occasion is for us to let the public know how we have been doing these things and what we are going to do in the next year. Like over the years we have had a number of some sports events and completion and you wouldn’t know that unless we tell you. So we are constantly re-informing people about what we are doing and that is why the Kingsweek is a continuous and constituent information exercise.”

Appealing to members who have not been active in the affairs of the Association over the years to get fully involved, Akhigbe, said, “King’s College Logos is one of the finest institutions in Nigeria; it is more than just a school with students; we have a long history of impact and we are making bigger strides in engaging with the government and the private sector to achieve change in our society. We don’t just want you to just hear about it but to come and listen to us talk about it and find out more about the changes we are making in our society.“ Expressing his expectation for the anniversary week, a member of the 2017 Kingsweek Committee, Ohiozoje Unuigboje said, the approximately weeklong event which also witnessed a concert at the Muson Centre, Lagos, is expected to witness a large turnout of people as the anniversary events proceed with the Founder Day’s speech, Cricket match, Family Fun Day, an AGM, a dinner and a church service that will crown it all on Sunday, September 24, adding that the event is open to all old boys of King’s College.

Unuigboje was quick to add that all those who graduated for King’s College, Lagos and have not been actively involved in the activities of the association are missing out so much, “even if nothing else, you are missing out in giving back to the school that moulded you, thereby missing out in helping to nurture those ones who are there now for a better tomorrow.”

“Education is the bedrock for success, not just

education in the class but also mentoring them to be better people for the future and also for them to know the differences between the reality outside and their dreams and how to also work to achieve their dreams. And also, we are one body in unity, when one person hurts, we are all hurt, so let’s try and find other KCOBs and help one another stand”, Unuigboje noted.

The General Secretary of the association, Lucky Idike said, “At KCOBA, we understand that we have a responsibility having passed through a prestigious institution that has a lot of honour attached to it, to preserve that honour and hand it over to the next generation of King’s men to carry forward. So clearly every year that we celebrate our anniversary, reminds us of this responsibility and helps us to understand that we are discharging that responsibility.”

Idike said that although a large part of the association’s efforts are expended in helping King’s College old boys to develop relationships amongst themselves and other members of the community who are not members of the association, with the aim to help members advance their businesses and personal interests by creating a platform for them to interact, noting further that the association is also very concerned about the school and also that the legacy that brought them together continues to survive and thrives.

“To this end, we are today at the forefront of agitating and championing for a review of the methodology under which secondary schools in Nigeria are managed,” he said, adding, “If you go around you will discover that the school it is not what it used to be and this is the story of Nigeria, a country that is not what it used to be, a lot of things are decaying and a lot of infrastructures are falling apart. And so we are saying to government that look, beyond the building and infrastructures, there is a methodology for managing the school that is currently not working and we are saying the future for managing secondary education in Nigeria, should be one that allows private sector interest to get involved in ensuring that secondary schools in Nigeria are run as best as they can and then deliver quality education to the students. So KCOBA wants government to enter public-private partnership with us so that together we can run a more effective and efficient school that deliver better quality service.” He stressed further that KCOBA has for long been very influential in shaping and steering affairs of the nation.

36/COLLAGE

15.09.2017

Mr Adekunle Emmanuel and his wife Oluwaseun during their traditional wedding in Ota, Ogun State.... recently

L-R: Kwara State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed; Chairperson, International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), Hajia Muhammed Salmat and Secretary, FIDA, Risqat Shittu Giwa during a courtesy visit to the Governor at Government House, Ilorin‌recently

Funso Fayomi and wife Bola .at his 60th birthday thanksgiving service in Abuja....recently

L-R: Glo subscriber/joint winner in a dance competition, Kelechi Amaechi, Nollywood actor, Kanayo O. Kanayo, joint winners, Abuh Jindera, and Yusuf Faith, at the glo mega comedy show, in Anyigba, Kogi State...recently

Mr. Marcel Ozonweke and his wife, Marian, with his Chinese business associates after christening of their twins children, Chimukasi and Chikaoso in Lagos...recently

L-R; Executive Vice Chairman, Ibru Organisation, Obrogun Oskar Ibru; Mrs. Rosemary Iriferigoma and her husband,.

Lawrence at the 50th birthday celebration of Rosemary in Lagos... recently

L-R; Groom's father and former Commissioner for Information, Kwara State, Oloriewe Abdulraheem Adedoyin; Newly-wedded Mr and Mrs TaoďŹ k Adesina Adedoyin at the couple's wedding ceremony in Towcester, United kingdom...recently

37/THISLIFE

15.09.2017

‘True Success is a Gradual Phenomenon’ Engineer Ezekiel Iyiola Omisore is one of the few remarkable minds left of Nigeria’s golden independence generation. Born on the 26th of August, 1927 into the Omisore Dynasty, he is a hugely accomplished structural engineer who took on some of the most important building projects within Nigeria during the second half of the 20th century.

In this interview with Solomon Elusoji, which was conducted at his modest home in Lagos, he opens a window into his life and shares a variety of profound thoughts on the nature of true success That was when I arrived Britain in 1953. The weather was very unkind to me. I couldn’t stand the cold. For example, I remember that one day I left my house in the Paddington area, to catch my train to school. It was during winter and snowing and the ground was very slippery.

When I got to the junction, I fell down and burst into tears. I had to go back to my house. But when I got to the door, it was another struggle, because I couldn’t manage to open it. I had to rethink, took courage and went to school. That period was the most challenging time for me.

But with determination, I waded through the winter period.

Even though I was highly sociable, I decided to put all efforts into my studies. For good nine months, I never partook in any socials. And it yielded fruits. In my first year, I came first. I was awarded five guineas by the Mayor of Hammersmith in the town hall; it was a civic reception.

How was growing up like?

It was quite rosy and challenging. I had no problems growing up, with the support of my parents. And things were not all that difficult as they are now.

I had a father who was a good Christian and a disciplinarian who loved his children very much. He put us on the path of righteousness and made us understand that to succeed in life, you need to be upright, truthful, studious and hard working. There is no hide and seek game in it, no shortcut to success, than to work hard and be upright.

My father, Chief Joshua Oye Omisore, was one of the children on the great Anibijuwon Omisore, who started the Omisore Dynasty. He was a great builder. And he was so great and powerful in Ife during the reign of about two or three kings. He actually helped Ife people open up the road to Ondo. He had no western education at all, but he believed that a lack of western education does not mean one is not wise. He helped to construct roads from Ife to Ibadan too.

My father was the first councillor in Ife, during the colonial days. He was a cocoa merchant and being a very religious man, he was a Baba Ijo of the St. Philips Cathedral, Aiyetoro, where I also became the Baba Ijo. And after that, he was honoured to be the Baba Ijo of all the Christians in Ife and its districts.

You grew up during the Second World War . . .

Life was a bit difficult then. That was when they started rationing food. I remember that I visited my brother in Lagos and I stayed with him at Obalende. I had to wake up very early in the morning to queue for food rations. And it was really a tough time. But you know Nigerians are blessed with ability to smile through suffering; people absorb a lot of hard times. To me, this is God’s country. We’ve had so many turbulent times, yet we’ve survived.

Why did you choose to study Structural Engineering?

I love Mathematics passionately. I led my classes throughout my years at Oduduwa College in mathematics and other subjects. Again, as I said, my grand-father was a great builder. So I wanted to step into his shoes. If you look at the Omisore family, we have a lot of architects and engineers.

I think it is imbibed in us. Apart from that, the art of drawing was another incentive. I took it in my Senior Cambridge as one of the A subjects and I had Grade One in 1948. So I didn’t find it difficult to study structural engineering.

I’m a Chartered Structure Engineer, a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Structure Engineers, fellow of the Nigerian Society of Consulting Engineers.

A member of COREN. And I established my practice in 1962, after opting out of Design Group.

Did going abroad to study make a difference in your technical abilities?

Hammersmith is a unique institution that yields out professionals in the building industry. You have architects, structural engineers, mechanical and electrical engineers, quantity surveyors being trained in the proper direction. And with the system there, you will surely know what you are doing. Apart from the academic side, you practice within the college, be involved in studio work every week where you come together with established architects and quantity surveyors to discuss and design real world projects. This is different from what is being done in Nigeria now. Nigerian universities need to put more attention to structural studies. They turn out civil engineers who are half-baked structural engineers. Academically, they have an insight into structures, but they are not deep in it. During

Omisore

my practice (I am still running the practice, only I have slowed down due to age), the products we get from the universities don’t impress me.

They are mathematical engineers. They normally depend on detailers and draughtsmen. But how can you correct a detailer if he goes wrong without you knowing how to detail? Most universities here don’t put them through the practical side.

That has to be corrected.

Compared to your days, how would you describe the quality of education we have now?

We seem to be more serious in those days than now. In those days, for Senior Cambridge exams, for instance, if you fail in English, you fail in all. You have to start again. But nowadays, they’ve made it easier for the students to pass in piece-meals. I don’t say it is bad, but it is not as good as we had it.

You returned to Nigeria from Britain in 1959.

Why did you decide to come back?

In those days, when you travel abroad – we call it ‘chasing the golden fleece’ – the ambition is to come back and serve. The urge in us was to return home and prove to the people that we have arrived and able to do things in the proper way, as against what is happening now.

So I joined the Ministry of Works, being the first structural engineer to be employed there.

But I never stayed long due to the treatment meted on me. There was differential treatment between civil engineers and structure engineers.

Although I fought the battle, because I asked for an interview with the then Head of Service, Simeon Adebo. He granted me the attention and I proved to him that what I had done within a year was incomparable with the civil engineers working on other projects. And he accepted, even giving me two incremental dates above what I was having. But it was short-lived.

While with the ministry, I was doing some private work with architects outside, especially Design Group, a firm of architects who are still going strong. They offered me a very rosy and

fantastic offer. The salary was almost three times what I was earning at the ministry and I had other remunerations. In fact, one of the bonuses I had in the first year was enough for me to buy a Mercedes. I joined their group as Associate Partner.

But that was short-lived too, due to youthful exuberance and other reasons. I was the only engineer, with two draughtsmen, working on all the group’s projects. One day I was going out with a friend, who was a Commissioner of the then Western Region, and I pointed out that I was the structural engineer that designed the National Library at Dugbe. He said ‘no’, that it was done by Design Group. And I told him ‘yes, Design Group is a firm that comprises architects, engineers and quantity surveyors’. He never believed me. It was then that I decided to come out and prove, with a new firm, that I was capable of doing all these things. But they insisted that I should stay within their fold, with an independent name: Iyi Omisore and Partners.

And I accepted.

Some of the projects I had were in University of Ibadan Nnmadi Azikwe Hall of Residence, Queen Elizabeth Hall of Residence extension, Department of Social Sciences, Student Union building and so on. But I could see that I was having so much to handle. I had to decide to have a partner. I sent for a friend of mine, Salau Adewoyin Afolabi, who was a very brilliant engineer. We did a lot of work together, including Great Nigerian Insurance Building, the University of Lagos’ Pro Chancellor, Chancellor, Registrar lodges; the Faculty of Arts with the lecture theatre in front. At the Obafemi Awolowo University, too, we handled Moremi Hall of Residence, Mozambique Hall, the Cafeteria, which is now being used as Department of Environmental, and the Pharmacy Building. In Lagos, I handled the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs in Kofo Abayomi and some of the tall buildings in Ikoyi.

What was the most challenging period of your life?

Why didn’t you go into politics?

I feel that if I work hard, I will have enough and live a good life. Politics in Nigeria has been messy, but it has become messier now. I was doing fine with my practice in structural engineering and I felt contented. So I never thought of joining politics. It’s a pity the politicians have actually spoilt Nigeria’s economy. I only hope to see a Nigeria of my dreams before I die, a Nigeria like a nation, a Nigeria that is peaceful, a Nigeria where 75 per cent of its budget will be spent on development and 25 per cent on governance.

To me, the constitution we are practicing is too expensive for us. It’s only a rich nation that can succeed with it. I think we should go back to parliamentary and regional systems: it’s less expensive. May God save us all.

You belong to some social clubs . . .

Being a social being, I joined Island Club since 1962; I’m a member of Metropolitan Club in Lagos and also Yoruba Tennis Club. I take life easy; I’m not avaricious. I believe that it is not the amount of gold or silver you have that makes a rich man, but the contentment of the mind.

At 90, how do you still manage to be so agile?

To start with, age is in the mind. I usually feel young at heart. As I said earlier, I always feel contented with what God has given me.

Apart from that, I do some exercise daily. When I wake up, I do some frog-jumping in my room; if the weather is good, I could come downstairs and walk round the neighbourhood; if not, the staircase is there and I can go up and down several times.

In the morning, I take eko and moi-moi. I eat a lot of beans daily, either as akara or moi-moi or beans itself. It’s only in the afternoon I take lumps of eba or amala or semo. I don’t normally eat at night. I might take just fruits and pawpaw, because I believe that if you eat at night without burning it, it would make you uncomfortable.

I love reading novels: Hadley Chase and the likes. I love music and dancing. My favourite artistes, in those days, were Nightingale, Haruna Ishola and Ebenezer Obey; King Sunny Ade and Fela too are okay.

What’s your advice to young people?

Young people should take things easy, believe in God, not be over-ambitious. With patience and fortitude, good things will come their way. They should be studious and try to be trustworthy, not cutting corners. I believe in gradual achievement.

I remember when I was riding a Volkswagen and when I saw someone with Peugeot, I will pray that God bless me enough to be able to buy a Peugeot. Later, I bought a Peugeot, then a Mercedes, and so on. I believe in gradual achievement, not a sudden one.

38/OPINION

15.09.2017

ADEOLAAKINREMI HOME TRUTHS

Email: adeola.akinremi@thisdaylive.com

Tel 08116759785(sms only)

Tony Elumelu’s Theory Across Africa, Tony Elumelu’s unstinting generosity is written in the hearts and minds of the people. National governments in Africa bear same record.

But the stylish banker is doing more than giving money these days. He’s opening up in a way few philanthropists and business owners do. His photocopier machine sales job story says more about resilience and grit. I found that in Philip Knight too. Knight is the founder of Nike, who wrote Shoe Dog, his memoir I recently read following a recommendation by Bill Gates.

Knight sees life clearly as a game. To him, whoever denies that truth, whoever refuses to play, gets left on the sidelines. He didn’t want that happen to him, so his crazy idea about running forever.

Shoe Dog, Knight’s memoir about creating Nike, answers the frequently asked question about what the path to business success really looks like: rough and rocky. His counsel is good too. He says you run, because the alternative, stopping, scares you to death.

In Elumelu’s case, the billionaire economist is telling honest tale of his rise from selling photocopier from one point to another as a young graduate to owning the most visible and arguably the largest bank in Africa, the United Bank for Africa.

In selling photocopier machine, Elumelu, who chairs his charity, Heirs Holdings, understands the power of knowing a product inside out.

“I mentioned that I started my career selling photocopy machines. I learned something key from this and that is that you must know your product in order to be able to sell it. We used to take the machines apart and put them back together and so we knew them inside out and of course that translated into our sales success. This applies to every job, you must be knowledgeable

Elumelu

about your product so you can sell it properly.

No knowledge gained is lost,” Elumelu says Behind Elumelu’s story is a compelling message for entrepreneurs: knowledge is very important for success.

And this, I see in Elumelu and Knight’s stories uncanny desire to succeed at all cost with one connection: insight.

Now, I have met Elumelu a few times over the years, we’ve exchanged telephone calls, we even flew together in his private jet, when he responded to national service as a member of

the Presidential Committee on Flood Relief and Rehabilitation for the 2012 flood victims in Nigeria, and I can tell of his exceptional humility, another common factor between him and Knight.

Yes, I’ve got wind of Elumelu’s book coming out soon, and I want leaders in government and business to get ready. I have no idea what Tony is cooking, but I’m confident that the book will be one that captures models for business, philanthropy and governance. Elumelu has his hands in all of those, and he has succeeded.

From Rwanda to Ghana, Gambia to Zambia, Uganda to Liberia, Congo to Congo and Nigeria to Tanzania, Elumelu’s fingerprint is everywhere.

In the global race for innovation, Elumelu, unlike others in his ilk on the continent, knows that innovation-based economy is what will make Africa fulfill its potential, so he’s doing everything to assemble innovative minds for that change.

More seriously, the government concentration on wage economy has not changed the tradition of labour rift on the continent.

At best, entrepreneurship idea by governments in Africa has been a humpty-dumpty. That is where the headache lies. It is simply good-fornothing. In most cases, programmes to reduce youth unemployment are implemented poorly and a huge sum of money in governments’ budget to turn the tide disappears every year.

Taken together, innovation is critical to the creation of high-quality, high-wage, sustainable jobs and economic growth, which, in turn, support the rapid progress of any nation.

This transition is what has been the preoccupation of Elumelu in recent years and that’s why his model for the development of Africa is receiving the attention.

Assuredly, the billionaire’s 100-meter dash

nowadays has been about how to make Africa great in the real sense of the word beyond its leaders’ rhetoric.

After releasing $100 million from his fortune to provide seed grant to 1000 proto-entrepreneurs every year, Elumelu has been making endowments to programmes that can help realise his dream for Africa.

No measure is perfect, but the strength of Elumelu’s approach provides insight into some fascinating questions. What kind of youth unemployment programme is desirable for Africa, a continent where the word “potential” has almost become a customised word?

On the global table for inventions, Africans working on the continent are mentioned in ridicule, because the products of their inventions are not innovative enough to get off the ground or compete favorably.

Ultimately, innovation-based economy is what Africa needs to move from its “potential” position to producer level and that’s what I think Elumelu has been spending his time and fortune doing in recent years.

Elumelu is putting his money where his mouth is and his interest in seeing the Africa rising narrative beyond the statistics is what I think remains the force behind his extraordinary quest for entrepreneurial skills in Africa.

With a made-in-Nigeria story that is motivating for any young entrepreneur, Elumelu, who became the youngest bank CEO in Nigeria’s history at the age of 34, is undoubtedly creating a shift in mindset— economically and politically.

As someone who likes to understand motives behind every story, I’m not fascinated by many “how to make it” stories told by businessmen, but the stories of Elumelu and Knight cut through my heart.

Follow me on Twitter:@adeolaakinremi1

LEKANFATODU HEADS-UP

Email lekantodun@yahoo.com

Tel 07058069255

Coming to Terms With Restructuring Whether Nigerians like it or not, the restructuring of the polity will be the defining issue in the general elections in 2019. Everywhere you turn now, both offline and online, the conversation is all about restructuring.

This discussion has been vigorously amplified such that it has become a buzzword with varying meanings to those who truly know the imperative of restructuring and those who don’t seem to quite understand. But they must, in any way, lend their voices to the reigning concept about the polity.

Undoubtedly, many Nigerians are talk-experts in virtually everything, but most are bereft of solutions. So it is not surprising that the issue of restructuring has become a cuisine that every Jack and Jill can claim expertise to prepare. This is just the way it is.

At every point of political transition of a nation the populace should demonstrate spirited frustration on big issues such as the afflicted health system, poor education sector, bad infrastructure, high level of poverty and such other matters. In Nigeria however, the politicians and exploiters of our ethno-religious differences always find emotive concepts that will get the masses worked up unnecessarily while those matters of national urgency remain on the backburner.

Like a good friend recalled, there wasn’t really any strong point in terms of promising manifesto to market candidate Jonathan during the 2011 presidential election than the emotional tale of a boy who had no shoes to go to school in and rose from a minority ethnic group in one of the remotest parts of Nigeria to aspire for the highest office in country. Therefore, he should be given the opportunity to serve as a remarkable

Jimoh

case-study of “possibility”. Hence Jonathan won and inspired a generation and also elevated the spirit of possibility.

But whether Jonathan’s presidency was commensurate with the type of desirable governance and leadership that Nigeria earnestly needed or not is a subject of diverse opinions out there.

Similarly, candidate Buhari in 2015 succeeded in winning millions of hearts and minds essentially on his personal integrity and long aversion for corruption. Of course, fighting corruption is a very important cause in the bid to move Nigeria forward, but this must be supported with viable

socio-economic programmes. That said, so far, how this battle against graft has impacted the lives of ordinary Nigerians since President Buhari’s assumption of office in May 2015 remains a hot topic in the public square.

Interestingly, while the need for Buhari to throw more vitality into the economy in a way similar to his resolution to rid the country of corrupt practices remains a hot topic, we have swiftly shifted to restructuring and different shades of Nigerians have become so obsessed with the new political theme such that it’s being adorned with variant colours and colourations as suitable for various contexts.

Clearly, there is a great confusion around the restructuring debate which has made a few discerning minds conclude that instead of the call for true reorganisation of Nigeria’s system to suit popular desires it will end up as a mere term exploited for political advantage and to win election.

It is therefore not unusual to hear, in the midst of these varying ideas, those canvassing for the restructuring of minds, restructuring of regions, restructuring through resource control and others who are seeking the balkanisation of the nation so as to allow every part to face their separate destinies.

Meanwhile, President Buhari almost scored a political own goal when, in his first broadcast to Nigerians upon his return from his medical vacation in the UK, he stated that, “Nigeria’s unity is settled and not negotiable.” And the president also added that “The National Assembly (NASS) and the National Council of State are the legitimate and appropriate bodies for national discourse.

Following this statement, many got riled and felt the President was talking down on the people and withholding the freedom of the people on the idea of restructuring, a now highly sensitive political talk.

However the acknowledgment of the authority of the NASS, which was reported had previously not been accorded sufficient regard by the presidency, may have helped to save what would have amounted to a noted political slip-up.

And in an interesting happenstance, a respected politician from Lagos State and an All Progressives Congress (APC) member of House of Representatives, Hon. JideJimoh was on Channels TV’s Politics Today where he shed more light on the restructuring discussion and the statement of the president from the perspectives of the legislature.

With a brilliant defense, which also looked like a strong emphasis for the presidency to come to terms with the reality of the main political issue on the table, Jimoh affirmed that Buhari never said that there will not be restructuring; that the president only stated that the unity of Nigeria was not negotiable.

In the same vein, Jimoh stated that he and his colleagues at the NASS will reevaluate growing agitations for restructuring of the polity and galvanise support in collaboration with the presidency and all stakeholders in making sure that all the elements of the idea are presented for the good of all Nigerians.

Bottom-line is, the earlier the presidency welcomes the noise on restructuring and take necessary steps in charting a better course for Nigeria, and inevitably, for the ruling APC to deepen its political capital, the better.

T H I S D AY FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

39

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T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

CITYSTRINGS

Acting Features Editor Charles Ajunwa Email charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

Nigerian Military School, Zaria

Life in Mowe Town Ehime Alex reports that the once sleepy Mowe Town along the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway is becoming attractive to all and sundry

W

hatever aspersion cast, Mowe is gradually becoming a bustling new-found town attracting all and sundry. Situated along the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and among one of the adjoining towns from the Ketu-Berger axis of Lagos, Mowe is that outsized area, on both sides of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, covering the popular kilometre 45, Redemption Camp Ground of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG).

As one of the adjoining towns with Arepo, Magboro, Ibafo, Agogbala, Oriofe, Aseese, Olowopedo, and Pakuro, its location most times, if not all the time, is seemingly difficult to notice. These towns jointly occupy an expanse of land known as Egbeyin Land, and sharing same local government area, the Obafemi-Owode LGA, Ogun State, South-west zone of Nigeria.

Back in history, it is not clear who the aborigines of Mowe were before the Egbas of the Yoruba migrated to the location probably after the collapse of the Old Oyo Empire and the subsequent internecine wars that lasted for close to 100 years in Yoruba land.

According to Pa Josiah Oduntan, the father of the present Baale of Mowe, who has spent well-over 76 years in Mowe, the first batch of settlers had located their huts in a place traditionally referred to as Abule-Egun, taken from the name of their leader. While other

Abules were built as more settlers came, five major villages called Imedu were established.

Economically speaking, business in Mowe has been on the uptick.

Many who initially traded and owned stores in marketplaces like Idumota, Balogun, Ladipo, Computer Village among others are gradually relocating their wares to Mowe. In fact, some had completely moved in.

Majorly, the economy is largely being driven by school business taken over by private investors who see the need to cash in on failures of government to provide basic social amenities

These monumental sites, now in the heart of the Mowe towns include: Imedu Nla, Imedu Olori, Imedu Okepa, Imedu Baaga and Imedu Alasha. As you may have it, some of these communities had taken new names. Imedu Nla is today known as Imedu Odofin, the present location and Palace of the Baale of Mowe. The settlers, who came to Mowe initially, were mostly farmers who farmed kola-nut, palm-oil, cocoa, plantain, cassava, and rice in a fairly communal setting. But as more settlers came, tokens were paid for the use of land.

The name Mowe was coined as a meeting spot, that is, a market place or location where all the villagers converged to trade on an interval of nine days. That location is still there and the market has continued to hold to date, though with slight modification. However, Mowe has had four successful chains of Baales.

The first was Solomon Ogundeye, followed by Olori Okunnijia and Imedu Alasha from the village of Imedu Olori. After brief communal clashes and struggle for power, as maybe expected, the reign of the Imedu Oloris was halted and the paraphernalia of leadership shifted to the people of Imedu Odofin where the Baale holds sway till now. However, Pa Oduntan opines that, “The villagers have lived peacefully even till now.”

At present, Mowe has over 14 communities including Abule-Egun, Loburo, Ogunrin, Adesan, Daluwan and Orunkola. As a fast growing location opening up for modern

kind of development, diverse people mostly from Lagos are on a daily basis infiltrating the town, building houses, renting cheap apartment and eking out a living. The reason can easily be understood as Lagos, the next neigbouring megacity to Ogun, seems congested and its economic lifestyle tiring and wearisome. Without denying the fact, many of these people, though resident in Mowe, work in Lagos. Mowe is no longer that usual place where expanse of lands are used for subsistence farming, like the Ofada rice production known to have been farmed there before the hustling and grabbing of lands for sales began outrageously among the opportunistic so-called land owners.

Well, it has become a commercial nerve town offering various kinds of opportunities like schools, hotels, restaurants, real estate, various types of trading and other forms of businesses.

Economically speaking, business in Mowe has been on the uptick. Many who initially traded and owned stores in marketplaces like Idumota, Balogun, Ladipo, Computer Village among others are gradually relocating their wares to Mowe. In fact, some had completely moved in. Majorly, the economy is largely being driven by school business taken over by private investors who see the need to cash in on failures of government to provide basic social amenities. It is doubtable as some person say that private schools in Mowe are approaching a thousand inclusive

41

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

CITYSTRINGS

The Boys during training

The School Library

Tallest building in Mowe

Imedu Nla community in Mowe

Inside the Nigerian Military School, Zaria

Commandant of the NMS, Brig. Gen. Mukhtar Mohammed Bunza

Pa Josiah Oduntan

Mowe Market

of crèche, nursery, primary, and secondary schools. However, to the credit of the Ogun State Government, two primary schools: the NUC Primary School and the Community Primary and one secondary school, the Adesan Secondary School, at present exist.

The bungalow style patterns of houses are apparently being built there, although others are in storey-building form. Many of them have farm gardens where crops like maize, garden egg, pawpaw and others are grown.

Initially, Mowe has more of Moslem faithful until the presence of the RCCG at the Redemption Camp. Today, the spread of that church can be seen in all the nooks and crannies of the town. Also, with the coming of other churches: Pentecostal, Anglican, Methodist and other bodies, the number of Muslims and Christians seems to be at par.

No doubt, one of the reasons people are leaving their former abodes to settle at Mowe majorly is to acquire a landed property and build their own houses to reduce the stress and probably get rid of inconsiderate landlords.

This appears to be the case why the huge influx of people to Mowe daily to enjoy some of the economic benefits the town offers.

Be that as it may, before now, perhaps 10 or 15 years back, plots of land were acquired with a paltry sum of money, though still cheap today anyway. According to an Estate

One of the reasons people are leaving their former abodes to settle at Mowe majorly is to acquire a landed property and build their own houses to reduce the stress and probably get rid of inconsiderate landlords

Agent, Mr. Ekundayo Oni, who has lived in Mowe for more than 13 years, a plot of land back then could go for as low as N50,000.

But things have change now, even with the opportunities it offers. He said, “To get a plot of land in this area, you have to cough out a chunk of N4 million and more depending on the location. For instance, to get a plot of land along the commercial Mowe-Ofada Road, you will be required to pay in the range of N8 million to N15 million.”

Well, it is indeed surprising to hear that there is no more virgin land in Mowe going by its demands, except on the outskirt, that is, in places like Ijere, Elelede, Toronto, Ofada, Owode and the others. However, Pa Oduntan and Oni both submit that land acquisition in Mowe is peaceful, only that the demands of the land-owner known as Omo Oni-Ile have to be settled.

For some, Mowe is a choice place to live as a result of the light traffic on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway compared to the frustrating logjam on other choice areas like

Sango, which is at the outskirt of Lagos on the Oshodi-Egbeda axis, and Ikorodu. But that notion is beginning to require a deeper breath as the busy nature of the carriageway of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway has been in a deplorable state for years. Being the only land route Nigeria has to connect other neighouring countries, the fear now even appears serious. More fearsome as all other states of the federation connect Lagos through it as well as to access the country’s main Sea Port in Apapa where the largest importation comes to the country. In passing, if things were done rightly by the various governments who had held sway to power, this route would have been a national testimony; the reverse seems to be the case anyway.

While Mowe continues to attract more people and opens up for commercial purposes, it is hoped that the calls from various quarters for the state government to provide and improve on basic social amenities like road, schools, hospitals and the likes are quickly considered and addressed.

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T H I S D AY Ëž , ÍŻÍłËœ 2017

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

FG Commences Sale of N100bn Debut Sovereign Sukuk Nume Ekeghe with agency report The federal government has started the sale of a N100 billion ($326 million) debut sovereign sukuk on the local market to fund road infrastructure.

The Debt Management Office (DMO) revealed this yesterday.

The seven-year Islamic bond which is structured as a lease will yield a 16.47 percent rental rate, payable semi-annually.

Subscription for the bond, which is guaranteed by the government, will close on September 20, Reuters reported.

The debut sukuk was originally planned to go on sale in June for three days via book building.

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy has a series of debt issues lined up this year, including a 20 billion naira in “green bond�. The West African country raised $1.5 billion Eurobond in the first quarter and sold another $300 million to its Diaspora.

Nigeria plans to borrow both locally and from offshore sources to help fund a budget deficit worsened by lower oil prices which have slashed government revenues and weakened its naira currency.

The country grew out of recession in the second quarter as oil revenues rose, but the pace of growth was slow, suggesting a fragile recovery.

The planned sukuk issue will target retail and institutional investors, with First Bank and Islamic wealth manager Lotus Capital managing the sale.

Nigeria is home to the largest Islamic population in sub-Saharan Africa, with about half of its 180 million people Muslims. It is also home to one of Africa’s growing consumer and corporate banking sectors.

The DMO said the bond will be tradable on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and on FMDQ over-the-counter platform and that it may re-open the offer in case of an undersubcription.

The Islamic bond sale is part of plans to develop alternative funding sources for government and to establish a benchmark curve for corporates to follow, the DMO has said.

In 2013, Nigeria’s Osun State issued 10 billion naira worth of sukuk, but no other sukuk transactions followed.

Nigeria’s central bank has been working to set regulatory ground rules for such things

as Islamic bonds (sukuk) and insurance (takaful) to try to emulate the success of the industry in Malaysia.

The bank has set up liquidity support systems to its noninterest lenders after it issued guidelines last year to enhance the quality of sukuk instruments and grant the Islamic bond liquidity status at its discount window.

Islamic finance development has become a centrepiece in many countries in the African region. A number of market development and regulatory efforts have taken place in the region in recent years.

Specifically, Nigeria, Sudan, South Africa and Senegal, Kenya, Morocco and Niger among others have put in place necessary legal and regulatory frameworks to enable Islamic banking offerings in their respective jurisdictions.

According to a report by the Malaysia World’s Islamic Finance Marketplace titled: ‘Islamic Finance in Africa: Impetus for Growth,’ a lot of conventional banks across the continent have started offering Shariah-compliant banking products through Islamic window set-up.

$280m Partnership for AgriculturalTransformation Launched Obinna Chima The multi-million dollar Partnership for Inclusive Agricultural Transformation in Africa (PIATA) has been launched at the 2017 African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF). PIATA is an innovative and transformative partnership and financing vehicle to drive inclusive agriculture transformation across the continent.

According to a statement, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are jointly expected to provide up to $280 million to catalyse and sustain inclusive agricultural transformation in at least 11 countries in Africa, which will in turn increase incomes and improve the food security of 30 million smallholder farm households.

The PIATA reflects a recognition that greater impact and

value can be achieved through a strategic partnership that builds on what has been achieved by each partner across the continent, and pulls them together in ways that help catalyse and sustain transformation at scale.

The PIATA is an important collaboration between donors that aligns behind the Malabo agenda agreed to by African Heads of State and Government in 2014. It signals an enduring commitment to Africa’s transformation agenda. PIATA is but one of various means by which each of the partners are supporting African countries to deliver on agricultural transformation; its partners continue to provide support through avenues including direct support to continental agencies, government bodies and in-country partners. The partnership will allow partners to align and complement existing efforts, making new investments in developing

input systems, value chains, and policy where they will have the most impact.

Speaking at the launch, Managing Director of the Rockefeller Foundation Africa Regional Office, Mr. Mamadou Biteye said: “We are pleased to be part of PIATA. We see it as an opportunity to leverage even more from the partners and their huge networks, for greater impact. “We are looking forward to deploying the technologies that we have helped develop over the years, together with our shared knowledge and grant support, to work with our esteemed partners. “Together we hope to catalyse Africa’s pursuit for prosperity through agriculture. PIATA is critical in our ongoing push to build the resilience of farmers and systems that affect them, especially in light of increasing challenges such as climate change, among others.�

Fidelity Bank Celebrates Export Management Programme Fidelity Bank Plc said it is set to celebrate the first anniversary of its highly regarded Export Management Programme (EMP). Launched in 2016, the EMP is a sector focused capacity building programme run by Fidelity Bank in partnership with the Pan-Atlantic University and the Nigerian Export Promotions Council (NEPC), to deliver impactful, world-class export management education to aspiring and existing players in the non-oil export sector of the Nigerian economy.

The programme, which prepares participants for effective play in the international non-oil export markets in particular and the larger export markets in general, has continued to

raise the bar of capacity building in exports in Nigeria. Its curriculum was structured to take participants through courses bordering strategically on product development for export; developing linkages with customers in importing countries; understanding the various export processes, accompanying documentation and other requirements in Nigeria and key importing countries; export products storage; quality assurance, branding and packaging, sourcing and supply chain management, logistics and shipping, export finance, business ethics, etc.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank, Nnamdi Okonkwo, who

gave insights into the rationale behind establishing the EMP, stated that the financial institution remains highly committed to aiding the diversification of Nigeria’s monolithic economy particularly through import substitution and export promotion. “We finance a lot of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria. A number of these MSMEs have strong export potentials. It was therefore a natural fit for us to partner with the Lagos Business School (LBS) and the Nigerian Export Promotions Council (NEPC) to make this happen given in particular, recent developments in the global oil markets and the impact they have had on the Nigerian economy� he said.

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

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Ěš

DECEMBER 2016 Broad Money (M2)

23,840,392.42

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11,520,166.67

---- Currency Outside Banks

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---- Demand Deposits

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-- Quasi Money

12,320,225.75

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

9,353,504.03

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

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26,970,297.97

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4,595,579.89

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ÍľËœÍ˛ÍąÍ´ËœÍˇÍŻÍľË›ÍľÍˇ

Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹ Ă?Ă—Ă™Ë? Ă?ĂŽË› Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“ĂœĂœĂ™Ăœ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ě™ Ěš

-2,841,337.90

Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹Ě‹ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ“Ăž ÞÙ ĂœĂ“Ă Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ăœ Ě™ Ěš

22,374,718.08

--Other Assets Net

-12,483,409.58

Reserve Money (Base Money)

ÍłËœÍśÍąÍľËœÍąÍ°Í°Ë›Í˛ÍŻ

Ě‹Ě‹ Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă“Ă˜ Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜

Í°ËœÍŻÍľÍˇËœÍŻÍľÍ˛Ë›Í°Íś

Ě‹Ě‹ Ă‹Ă˜Ă•Ă? Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă?Ă?

3,318,344.71 Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

MANAGED FUNDS Month

December 2016

Inter-Bank Call Rate

͎ͯ˛͹͡

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

ͯͲ˛͎͎

Treasury Bill Rate

ͯ͹˛͡ʹ

Savings Deposit Rate

Ͳ˛ͯ͜

1 Month Deposit Rate

͜˛ͳ͹

3 Months Deposit Rate

͜˛͎͜

6 Months Deposit Rate

͎ͯ˛Ͱ͹

12 Months Deposit Rate

͎ͯ˛;ʹ

Prime Lending rate

ͯ;˛͎͡

Maximum Lending Rate

Ͱ͜˛ͳͳ Ëž Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ͯ͹Ϲ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT, WED, 13 SEPT 2017 The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $52.92 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $52.08 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), ZaďŹ ro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

43

˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

Nigeria’s top 50 stocks based on market fundamentals

14-Sep-17

13-Sep-17

% Change

Capitalisation

EPS

P/E

P/S

Div. Yld

Price/ Book Value

Table 1 Market Statistics Mkt Indicators

01 Dangote Cement Plc

213.99

209.00

2.39%

3,646,498,179,595.95

13.34

15.95

4.93

3.76%

4.40

02 Nigerian Breweries Plc

180.55

180.06

0.27%

1,431,599,165,328.40

3.58

51.23

4.64

1.96%

8.77

03 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

37.82

37.88

-0.16%

1,113,087,198,251.68

4.49

8.79

2.78

4.48%

2.16

1,205.00

1,190.00

1.26%

955,150,783,660.00

10.00

122.02

5.32

2.38%

31.32

05 Zenith Bank Plc

22.20

22.75

-2.42%

697,002,162,049.20

4.13

5.52

1.41

7.89%

1.02

Table 3 Top 5 Gainers

06 Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc

40.00

40.01

-0.02%

400,000,000,000.00

2.85

14.20

2.59

0.25%

2.88

Stock

07 Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

18.00

18.00

0.00%

330,291,921,870.00

0.68

26.61

0.56

3.44%

0.53

08 United Bank for Africa Plc

8.90

8.90

0.00%

322,887,784,265.80

1.99

4.81

0.91

6.26%

0.78

09 Access Bank Plc

9.70

9.72

-0.21%

280,601,324,820.70

13.18

0.76

0.76

5.50%

0.64

480.79

480.79

0.00%

266,026,065,387.27 -82.02

-5.88

4.21

3.30%

0.71

11 Presco Plc

60.80

60.80

0.00%

241,405,004,336.00

0.03

2,338.93

3.81

1.90%

6.49

12 Lafarge Africa Plc

50.36

50.52

-0.32%

229,384,855,151.60

3.71

15.36

1.18

5.26%

1.04

Table 4 Top 5 Losers

13 FBN Holdings Plc

5.74

5.80

-1.03%

206,038,980,626.08

0.16

35.99

0.35

2.55%

0.35

Stock

14 Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc

13.70

13.75

-0.36%

164,400,000,000.00

2.01

6.92

0.77

3.60%

2.19

15 Unilever Nigeria Plc

41.80

44.00

-5.00%

158,141,783,250.00

0.81

49.26

2.17

0.13%

12.95

16 Guinness Nig Plc

95.40

95.40

0.00%

143,661,733,135.20

-3.06

-25.17

1.12

4.16%

2.94

17 International Breweries Plc

37.53

38.00

-1.24%

123,633,175,478.40

0.02

1,642.11

4.58

0.68%

11.11

232.10

235.00

-1.23%

78,803,018,367.70

43.58

5.43

0.28

5.92%

3.41

6.10

6.42

-4.98%

73,411,175,253.40

0.29

23.59

0.18

10.95%

0.43

20 Flour Mills Nig. Plc

27.00

26.50

1.89%

70,854,404,049.00

3.71

7.82

0.14

6.90%

0.72

21 Forte Oil Plc.

48.80

48.80

0.00%

63,561,077,826.40

3.66

13.66

0.50

6.90%

1.38

22 Okomu Oil Palm Plc

66.50

62.89

5.74%

63,435,015,000.00

5.15

12.75

4.36

0.15%

3.68

170.00

170.00

0.00%

61,301,194,540.00

22.61

7.69

0.67

4.14%

2.92

90.30

90.30

0.00%

57,845,309,778.90 -21.86

-4.21

0.52

2.39%

5.47

1.28

1.31

-2.29%

49,562,876,704.00

-0.03

-43.98

0.83

0.00%

0.57

30.87

30.87

0.00%

40,748,400,000.00

-2.89

-11.83

0.32

4.39%

0.64

1.29

1.30

-0.77%

37,361,735,542.68

0.39

3.54

0.26

11.68%

0.21

13.00

13.00

0.00%

34,442,698,914.00

0.91

14.26

1.88

4.23%

4.28

1.04

1.00

4.00%

29,942,034,851.04

0.18

5.86

0.27

8.57%

0.35

15.45

15.02

2.86%

29,677,354,779.15

3.37

4.44

0.38

6.68%

0.38

1.15

1.15

0.00%

26,634,447,313.20

-0.29

-4.02

0.13

0.00%

0.12

32 PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc

25.99

25.99

0.00%

25,990,000,000.00

5.69

4.73

1.87

0.37%

0.72

33 Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc

21.40

21.40

0.00%

25,591,756,843.20

3.02

6.95

1.67

1.43%

1.50

34 Cap Plc

33.00

33.00

0.00%

23,100,000,000.00

2.17

15.89

3.54

3.33%

16.77

35 FCMB Group Plc

1.08

1.10

-1.82%

21,386,927,643.48

0.09

13.13

0.13

8.93%

0.12

36 Custodian And Allied Insurance Plc

3.60

3.60

0.00%

21,174,711,102.00

1.06

3.35

0.51

3.93%

0.64

11.00

11.00

0.00%

20,660,222,440.00

-0.64

-18.74

0.70

10.77%

2.15

38 Mansard Insurance Plc

1.90

1.90

0.00%

19,950,000,000.00

0.25

7.57

0.96

2.63%

0.99

39 Wema Bank Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

19,287,233,040.50

0.07

7.59

0.37

0.00%

0.41

40 Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

2.00

2.10

-4.76%

15,860,395,316.00

-0.40

-5.19

0.35

7.62%

0.50

41 Continental Reinsurance Plc

1.43

1.40

2.14%

14,833,024,366.16

0.30

4.51

0.54

8.96%

0.69

42 Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc

8.75

8.75

0.00%

10,995,930,452.50

1.29

6.96

0.70

1.11%

0.90

43 Skye Bank Plc

0.53

0.53

0.00%

7,356,559,747.30

-2.93

-0.21

0.05

49.18%

0.08

44 Wapic Insurance Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

6,691,369,126.00

0.18

2.78

0.85

6.00%

0.41

45 Unity Bank Plc

0.56

0.56

0.00%

6,546,029,247.52

0.19

3.16

0.08

0.00%

0.08

46 Resort Savings & Loans Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

5,664,866,202.00

0.03

17.71

3.72

0.00%

1.94

47 Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc

3.22

3.22

0.00%

5,229,984,375.00

0.36

9.51

0.69

5.88%

0.85

48 UACN Property Development Co. Limited

3.00

2.90

3.45%

5,156,249,985.00

-0.90

-3.23

0.79

24.05%

0.15

49 Fidson Healthcare Plc

3.20

3.20

0.00%

4,800,000,000.00

0.50

6.46

0.41

1.56%

0.69

50 AIICO Insurance Plc

0.58

0.57

1.75%

4,019,518,598.40

1.48

0.38

0.14

8.93%

0.45

04 Nestle Nigeria Plc

10 Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd

18 Total Nigeria Plc 19 Oando Plc

23 Mobil Oil Nig Plc 24 7-Up Bottling Comp. Plc 25 Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc 26 Julius Berger Nig. Plc 27 Fidelity Bank Plc 28 National Salt Co. Nig. Plc 29 Sterling Bank Plc 30 U A C N Plc 31 Diamond Bank Plc

37 Cadbury Nigeria Plc

TOTAL

11,691,685,638,610.80

TOTAL MARKET CAP

12,293,611,812,151.10

% OF MARKET CAP Annotation - MA* = Simple Moving Average

95.10%

NSE All Share Index NSE Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Open 13-Sep-17

Close 14-Sep-17

Change %

35,464.34 12.22

35,660.04 12.29

0.55% 0.57%

149.29 11.62

150.16 11.69

0.58% 0.58%

Thisday BGL 50 Index Thisday BGL 50 Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Open Close Change 13-Sep-17 14-Sep-17 %

Okomu Oil Palm Plc Sterling Bank Plc UACN Property Development Co. Limited U A C N Plc Dangote Cement Plc

62.89 1.00 2.90

66.50 1.04 3.00

5.74% 4.00% 3.45%

15.02 209.00

15.45 213.99

2.86% 2.39%

Open Close Change 13-Sep-17 14-Sep-17 %

Unilever Nigeria Plc Oando Plc Honeywell Flour Mill Plc Zenith Bank Plc Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc

44.00 6.42 2.10 22.75 1.31

41.80 6.10 2.00 22.20 1.28

-5.00% -4.98% -4.76% -2.42% -2.29%

Market appreciates by 0.55% Market pulse on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) today - Thursday, September 14th, 2017 ended positive as the market closed green. This was further highlighted by positive performance from the NSE Subsectors: Insurance and Consumer Goods (Save Banking and Oil & Gas). Also, trading activities increased in volume as 128.31 million shares worth N2.73 billion in 3,241 deals exchanged hands today. This is an increase from the 119.90 million shares worth N1.74 billion in 3,015 trades were carried out on Wednesday. Topping in volume terms are: Zenith Bank Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Skye Bank Plc; while Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Nestle Nigeria Plc ended trading as the most active stocks in value terms. Today, Brent crude oil price currently sells at US$55.21 per barrel while it rose by 1.63% to close at $55.16 per barrel the previous Wednesday.

The All Share Index (NSEASI) closed positive with 0.55% (+195.70) increase to close at 35,660.04 from 35,464.34 the previous trading day. Market capitalization appreciated in tandem to N12.29 trillion from N12.22 trillion of prior trading day. Similarly, the Thisday BGL 50 Index closes with a increase of 0.58% to 150.16 from 149.29 recorded at the end of the previous trading day, while its market capitalization stood at N11.69 trillion from N11.62 trillion of the previous trading day.

A total number of 16 stocks gained on the bourse today while 22 stocks declined, leaving 58 stocks unchanged.

Leading the pack again was Okomu Oil Palm Plc led with a gain of 5.74% to close at N66.50 per share. It was followed

by Jaiz Bank Plc with a gain of 4.48% to close at N0.70 per share. Others on the gainers’ list include: C&I Leasing Plc, Newrest ASL Nigeria Plc and Sterling Bank Plc. On the decliners’ list, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc led with a loss of 8.43% to close at N0.76 per share. It was followed by Conoil Plc with a loss of 5.00% to close at N27.55 per share. Others on the decliners list include: Unilever Nigeria Plc, May & Baker Nigeria Plc and First Aluminium Nigeria Plc. Okomu Oil Palm Plc emerged the toast of investors as it topped the Thisday BGL 50 Index gainers’ list with a gain of 5.74% to close at N66.50 per share. It was followed by Sterling Bank Plc with a gain of 4.00% to close at N1.04 per share. Others on the gainers chart include: UACN Property Development Co. Limited, UACN Plc and Dangote Cement Plc. On the decliners’ list, Unilever Nigeria Plc led with a loss of 5.00% to close at N41.80 per share. It was closely followed by Oando Plc with a loss of 4.98% to close at N6.10 per share. Others on the decliners’ list are: Honeywell Flour Mill Plc. Zenith Bank Plc and Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc.

REQUIRED DISCLOSURE This report has been prepared by BGL Plc. BGL Plc does and seeks to do business with companies covered in its research reports. As a result, the firm may have a conflict of interest that could affect the objectivity of this report. Investors should use this report as one of many other factors in making their investment decisions.

For more details go to www.thisdaylive.com

44

T H I S D AY ˾ , SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

MARKET NEWS

All-Share Index Rises Further as Market Sustains Upward Trend Goddy Egene and Nosa Alekhuogie The Nigerian equities market sustained its positive performance for the second day yesterday as the Nigerian Stock Exchange All-Share Index (NSE ASI) appreciated by 0.55 per cent to close at 35,660.044.

The market rebounded on Wednesday after days of bearish trend following investors’ nega-

tive sentiments. The positive trend was extended yesterday, boosted by Dangote Cement Plc. Although 22 stocks declined in value and 18 appreciated, the gain posted by Dangote Cement Plc made the market to remain in the bulls’ territory. While the market capitalisation added N70 billion to close higher at N12.22 trillion, Dangote Cement accounted for N40 billion. The stock appreciated by 2.4 per cent

T H E MAIN BOARD

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

to close at N213.99 per share.

The leading cement manufacturing firm had on Wednesday confirmed that it had made moves to acquire the entire share capital of PPC Limited, which is South Africa’s leading cement firm.

In a notification to the NSE, the board of directors of Dangote Cement disclosed it had communicated its interest to acquire the entire share capital

N I G E R I A N QUANTITY TRADED

STO C K

VALUE TRADED ( N )

Daily Summary as of 22/02/2016 Printed 22/02/2016 14:36:10.010

Daily Summary (Bonds) No Debt Trading Activity Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO PLC Crop Production Totals Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals AGRICULTURE Totals CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals CONGLOMERATES Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Infrastructure/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals Food Products DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC NASCON ALLIED INDUSTRIES PLC N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. TIGER BRANDED CONSUMER GOODS PLC Food Products Totals Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. Household Durables Totals Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC STERLING BANK PLC. UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC WEMA BANK PLC. Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INSURANCE PLC LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. AXAMANSARD INSURANCE PLC N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. UNITY KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UNITED CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC

6 6 12

30.00 34.00

19 19 31

of PPC to the board of directors of the South Africa’s firm.

But the Dangote Cement explained that the acquisition talks are still at the preliminary stage and the transaction remains a potential transaction, promising to publish further details.

Meanwhile, Okomu Oil Palm Plc led the price gainers with 5.7 per cent, trailed by Jaiz Bank Plc with 4.4 per cent. C & I Leasing Plc chalked up

12,629 11,640 24,269

374,530.15 421,345.20 795,875.35

1.25

1,078,511 1,078,511 1,102,780

1,358,964.30 1,358,964.30 2,154,839.65

5 68 13 86 86

0.77 1.13 20.47

33,500 6,740,423 65,995 6,839,918 6,839,918

25,070.00 7,635,453.96 1,344,425.15 9,004,949.11 9,004,949.11

13 13

41.50

31,970 31,970

1,409,214.78 1,409,214.78

5 5 18

5.20

28,901 28,901 60,871

154,716.48 154,716.48 1,563,931.26

6 24 7 98 135

2.85 118.85 20.00 99.00

190,900 53,000 15,200 429,541 688,641

528,079.00 6,201,924.95 293,757.00 42,728,789.84 49,752,550.79

9 9

168.50

166,476 166,476

28,285,937.95 28,285,937.95

54 38 6 12 1 29 140

5.61 19.00 1.37 6.86 6.65 1.27

2,120,306 314,421 40,000 119,863 433 3,285,739,119 3,288,334,142

11,610,520.13 5,953,792.96 55,716.00 842,442.48 2,736.56 4,074,348,894.07 4,092,814,102.20

11 54 65

17.86 700.00

18,825 98,360 117,185

329,518.50 68,567,962.00 68,897,480.50

11 11

4.46

99,050 99,050

420,455.00 420,455.00

13 21 34 394

21.90 28.00

36,887 133,117 170,004 3,289,575,498

820,034.75 3,737,067.92 4,557,102.67 4,244,727,629.11

82 51 21 25 200 41 16 147 11 15 67 676

4.10 1.49 15.60 1.21 16.70 1.07 1.76 2.95 5.30 0.63 0.98

3,962,506 2,163,396 278,470 790,900 4,847,312 1,969,858 1,204,932 8,586,418 39,752 501,617 5,920,564 30,265,725

16,210,255.82 3,314,106.88 4,136,459.40 958,864.34 80,963,793.44 2,115,552.11 2,087,767.85 25,302,954.71 205,645.40 316,018.71 5,813,502.17 141,424,920.83

14 8 2 3 7 10 1 1 46

0.80 0.90 0.50 0.50 2.06 0.76 0.50 0.50

200,107 276,500 5,004,000 1,000,000 351,540 327,285 37,708,135 10 44,867,577

160,838.67 251,350.00 2,502,000.00 500,000.00 720,728.80 245,325.31 18,854,067.50 5.00 23,234,315.28

1 1

1.08

4,760 4,760

4,950.40 4,950.40

31 7 105 7 20 170 893

2.46 4.00 0.85 14.15 1.31

1,149,464 27,041 31,257,120 38,035 708,255 33,179,915 108,317,977

2,830,722.84 104,002.06 26,613,309.20 537,985.34 931,556.31 31,017,575.75 195,681,762.26

27

2.69

614,065

1,572,223.05

4.3 per cent, while Newrest ASL Nigeria Plc and Sterling Bank Plc followed with 4.0 per cent apiece. NEM Insurance Plc went up by 3.5 per cent, just as NPF Microfinance Bank Plc garnered 3.5 per cent.

Conversely, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc led the price losers with 8.4 per cent. Conoil Plc and Unilever Nigeria Plc trailed by 5.0 per cent each, while Oando

Plc and First Aluminium Plc 4.9 per cent and 3.7 per cent respectively.

Market turnover stood at 128.31 million shares worth N2.72 billion exchanged in 3,241 deals. In terms of sectoral performance, the NSE Industrial Goods Index led with 1.1 per cent followed by NSE Insurance Plc, rising by 0.4 per cent. The NSE Consumer Goods Index rose by 0.2 per cent.

E XC H A N G E

MAIN BOARD GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC Pharmaceuticals Totals HEALTHCARE Totals ICT IT Services TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. IT Services Totals ICT Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. Building Materials Totals Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Electronic and Electrical Products Totals Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals OIL AND GAS Energy Equipment and Services JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SERVICES PLC Energy Equipment and Services Totals Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC. FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals Exploration and Production SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD Exploration and Production Totals OIL AND GAS Totals SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Printing/Publishing LEARN AFRICA PLC Printing/Publishing Totals Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals Support and Logistics CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals SERVICES Totals EQTY Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board ASeM CONSUMER GOODS Food Products MCNICHOLS PLC Food Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals ASeM Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board PREMIUM FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Other Financial Institutions FBN HOLDINGS PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials DANGOTE CEMENT PLC Building Materials Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals PREMIUM Board Totals Equity Activity Totals

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

32 4 6 69 69

25.33 0.94 0.69

551,998 16,020 597,000 1,779,083 1,779,083

13,903,164.18 15,299.40 412,110.00 15,902,796.63 15,902,796.63

1 1 1

1.69

500 500 500

805.00 805.00 805.00

16 9 4 6 10 31 76

24.00 9.30 35.78 8.62 3.36 80.50

110,727 40,229 26,700 142,300 299,900 14,373,223 14,993,079

2,707,053.97 362,501.29 992,680.00 1,227,076.00 966,480.00 1,157,057,077.16 1,163,312,868.42

6 6

1.51

134,500 134,500

204,240.00 204,240.00

5 5 87

50.00

24,529 24,529 15,152,108

1,165,135.50 1,165,135.50 1,164,682,243.92

2 2

0.50

24,262 24,262

12,131.00 12,131.00

90 90

3.47

3,827,573 3,827,573

13,288,632.05 13,288,632.05

21 7 8 21 7 64

18.34 1.84 342.00 150.00 145.00

81,125 100,300 20,300 16,295 13,699 231,719

1,505,034.50 182,832.00 6,595,470.00 2,396,080.60 1,959,692.96 12,639,110.06

33 33 189

318.00

389,934 389,934 4,473,488

124,037,602.56 124,037,602.56 149,977,475.67

1 1

0.50

941 941

470.50 470.50

5 5

3.80

32,870 32,870

127,756.40 127,756.40

13 13

0.89

624,500 624,500

538,430.00 538,430.00

1 22 23

2.29 4.00

4,588 251,094 255,682

10,001.84 1,001,583.80 1,011,585.64

1 1 43 1,811

1.68

10,000 10,000 923,993 3,428,226,216

16,000.00 16,000.00 1,694,242.54 5,785,390,675.15

2 2 2 2

1.21

270,464 270,464 270,464 270,464

327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44

306 306

11.45

13,929,679 13,929,679

159,605,439.23 159,605,439.23

278 278 584

3.74

10,438,552 10,438,552 24,368,231

39,515,087.18 39,515,087.18 199,120,526.41

35 35 35 619 2,432

139.83

38,770 38,770 38,770 24,407,001 3,452,903,681

5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 204,425,192.41 5,990,143,129.00

2 2 2 2 2 10 10 10

2,330.00 2.33 6.02 11.09 18.07

3,000 20 20 20 15 3,075 3,075 3,075

6,986,000.00 46.70 120.20 221.80 270.65 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund Name NEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (ETF) VETIVA BANKING ETF VETIVA CONSUMER GOODS ETF VETIVA GRIFFIN 30 ETF VETIVA INDUSTRIAL ETF Exchange Traded Fund Totals ETF Board Totals ETP Activity Totals

45

˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

MARKET NEWS

LASACO Assurance Hailed on Transfer of N1.063bn Legacy Funds to PTAD Ebere Nwoji LASACO Assurance Plc has been commended for the recent transfer of N1.063 billion legacy funds in its custody to the Pension Transition Arrangement Directorate (PTAD).

The money was part of pension entitlements for six federal government parastatals under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) which has been under its custody.

The fund transfer was

in compliance with recent directive by PTAD that all insurance firms, who have such funds in their custody, should transfer same to it (PTAD).

Since the directive last year, insurance firms concerned have shown signs of compliance despite the impact it has on their accumulated premium and reserves.

While some had complied, others are warming up for to do so.

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

A statement by the LASACO, said PTAD gave the commendation through its Divisional Manager, Mrs. Christianah Adebote.

According to the statement, Adebote had already issued a ‘Letter of Clearance’ and has urged other companies that were yet to settle their obligations based on the directive to take a cue from those that have complied.

Adebote, said that the PTAD, last year, issued

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 13-Sep-2017, unless otherwise stated.

demand notices on the insurance companies holding legacy funds meant for payment of Pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS) to transfer outstanding funds into dedicated e-Collection account of the directorate with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

She explained that the Pensions Reform Act (PRA) 2014 vested all pension assets, funds and liabilities in PTAD and warned that other concerned companies

yet to comply with the directive should do so without further delay.

She also noted that the intention of the federal government’s request for the release of the funds was to grow them for the prompt payment of pension to Pensioners.

The General Manager (Marketing) LASACO Assurance Plc, Ademoye Shobo, while receiving the Letter of Set Off from PTAD, having fully paid the

amount due, said the legacy funds managed on behalf of six federal government parastatals as required by section 42 of the Pension Reform Act (2014) was fully remitted in July 2017.

LASACO achieved a profit before tax of N1.14 billion for the financial year ended December 2016, representing an increase of 183 per cent when compared with the N404 million achieved in 2015.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 169.61 170.25 33.54% Nigeria International Debt Fund 230.71 231.45 9.10% ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.80 0.81 13.80% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.75% ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 16.73 17.24 35.54% ARM Discovery Fund 355.42 366.13 23.76% ARM Ethical Fund 25.19 25.95 12.76% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 18.27% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund 141.23 142.22 34.27% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 18.41% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 19.91% Paramount Equity Fund 11.56 11.85 23.47% Women's Investment Fund 95.00 97.43 12.30% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 19.70% FBN CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund 1,125.03 1,126.16 10.95% FBN Heritage Fund 139.88 141.12 25.49% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.76% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional $110.74 $111.74 7.68% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail $110.00 $111.00 7.71% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 149.78 151.96 33.03% FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Equity Fund 1.31 1.34 40.96% Legacy Short Maturity (NGN) Fund 2.86 2.86 11.44% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Growth Fund 2,851.84 2,895.45 29.80% Coral Income Fund 2,354.38 2,354.38 13.00% GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 15.87% INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 0.00% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.05 2.07 21.69% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 17.98%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.12 1.14 13.28% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,041.41 1,041.41 8.31% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 12.51 12.62 29.45% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 18.96% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.16 1.19 17.38% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 10.79 10.85 3.79% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 17.25% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 118.44 120.59 16.91% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.36 1.36 9.06% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 2,135.54 2,147.04 16.61% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 164.15 164.15 6.62% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.94 0.95 22.73% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 209.24 209.24 11.96% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 165.50 167.63 27.47% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 18.63% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 9,195.71 9,295.53 21.22% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.30 1.31 15.94% United Capital Bond Fund 1.39 1.39 14.02% United Capital Equity Fund 0.84 0.86 25.25% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 18.00% ZENITH ASSETS MANAGEMENT LTD info@zenith-funds.com Web: www.zenith-funds.com; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 12.25 12.43 26.13% Zenith Ethical Fund 12.95 13.30 19.21% Zenith Income Fund 18.43 18.43 11.46%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.41 129.68

1.01% 4.61%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

10.46 102.73

10.56 104.65

21.29% 35.56%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

4.29 9.37 16.50 19.63 133.42

4.33 9.45 16.60 19.83 135.42

55.00% 33.10% 38.11% 22.93% 3.47%

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

46

T H I S D AY FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

47

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

WORLD OF ISLAM INTERNATIONAL

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

Rohingya Crisis: Satellite Images The Hijrah, Urbanization and of Myanmar Village Burning

Human Development –1 Spahic Omer/IslamiCity

P

eople are both the creators and demolishers of every civilizational accomplishment. They, too, are the only beneficiaries of each and every valuable civilizational upshot.

Similarly, people are the creators and inhabitants of cities, a locus of civilization. They create cities and then live and work in them. They do this either commendably, thus securing and enjoying the fruits of their right acts, so long as they stick to the right schemes which led them to such a state, or appallingly with no clear purpose or direction. In the latter scenario, things are always bound to work against the inhabitants of a city, making their lives both miserable and injurious. Allah says to this effect: “Mischief has appeared on land and sea because of (the deed) that the hands of men have earned, that (Allah) may give them a taste of some of their deeds: in order that they may turn back (from evil).” (al-Rum, 30:41) Of the essence is thus constantly and painstakingly educating, purifying, nurturing and cherishing individuals, as well as overseeing and monitoring their progress and involvements, along the lines of an adopted worldview, philosophy and vision. This is so because individuals make up groups and societies, and they are the planners, makers, beneficiaries, consumers and sustainers, or slayers, of every civilizational triumph. They subsist at the heart of every urbanization scheme and advancement. Indeed, human development and urbanization are intertwined. They cannot be separated. Neither of them can be treated without, or at the expense of, the other.

It goes without saying that the people are the most direct causes of their own civilizational destinies. They, by and large, are fully responsible for them. Allah says, for example, that He will change the condition of a people only when they change what lies in themselves, i.e., when they change themselves first. (al-Ra’d, 31:11) He also says that He will help a people only when they “help” Him by obeying Him and by following His religion, Islam. (Muhammad, 7) This close and causal relationship between urbanization and any sort of civilizational awakening, on the one hand, and human spiritual and moral development and enlightenment, on the other, has been emphasized as a blueprint for genuine and lasting success in both worlds since time immemorial. It in fact denoted the focal point of each and every holy prophet’s struggle and teachings, from Adam to Muhammad (peace be upon them all).

About Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), Allah says that he was sent in order to teach people that they “...should worship none but Allah” (Hud, 11:2), and that they should seek “...the forgiveness of your Lord, and turn to Him in repentance; that He may grant you enjoyment, good (and true), for a term appointed, and bestow His abounding grace on all who abound in merit!

But if you turn away, then I fear for you the penalty of a great day. To Allah is your return, and He has power over all things.” (Hud, 11:3-4) Thus, in view of the developments that the Islamic message was living through in the city-state of Madinah, following the Hijrah, such a thing, i.e., nurturing and developing community members consistent with the values and beliefs of Islam, instantaneously attracted much of the Prophet’s attention.

It should be noted that at the time of the Hijrah, the ongoing revelation of Islam was entering its 13th year and the Muslims were yet to set up a free and autonomous state of their own. Once the city of Madinah with most of its inhabitants wholeheartedly welcomed the new religion, so fiercely disapproved of by many where it had originated, the wait finally came to an end and the stage was set for broadening the focus of the young community’s undertakings. As a result, the focus of revelation was likewise widened. The religion of Islam thus began to assert itself as a universal code of life overlooking no segment of human existence - a momentous development indeed after having been portrayed essentially as an inclusive belief system during the precarious episode in Makkah.

From the point of development, urbanization and community building, the whole Madinah period of revelation - in particular the first half, about four to five years - was, as expected, exceptionally eventful too.

The Prophet’s vision of the subject of personality and community building, as a launch pad for a wholesome urban development, was wellstructured and arresting. He championed that under the auspices of Islam and its unique tawhidic worldview, the Muslims are seen as brothers to each other and their similitude is like a wall whose bricks enforce and rely on each other; they are like a solid cemented structure held together in unity and strength, each part contributing strength in its own way, and the whole held together not like a mass, but like a living organism. The Muslims are furthermore related to each other in such a way that if one of them (a part of an organic and formidable formation called the Ummah) is troubled by a problem of whatever kind, the rest of the body parts will remain disturbed and restless until the matter became solved.

Surely, for the reason of nurturing community members did the Prophet (pbuh) upon arriving in Madinah disclose to the assembled crowd some of the paths which invariably lead towards Jannah (Paradise) in the Hereafter, as well as towards individual and collective felicity in this world. Such paths are: implementing and spreading peace and concord wherever possible and by whatever lawful means, sharing and compassion, maintaining good relations with relatives (as well as with others), and praying at night when everybody else is asleep. The companion ‘Abdullah b. Salam said that these were the first words he had heard from the Prophet (pbuh). Without doubt, these were among the very first advices the Prophet (pbuh) gave following the Hijrah, because ‘Abdullah b. Salam was among the first to see, meet and hear the Prophet (pbuh). No sooner had he done so, than he embraced Islam, as he realized that the Prophet’s face “seemed by no means like the face of a phony.”

For the same reason did the content of the Prophet’s sermon at the first Friday prayer (Jumu’ah) in Madinah - as well as the content of the other sermons of his at this juncture emphasize the importance of such issues as faith (iman), taking hold of the good and leaving the evil, brotherhood, sincerity, steadfastness, gratefulness for the blessing of Islam, the significance of helping one another in righteousness and piety and not in sin and rancor, the common cause of the Muslims, and the like.

Some of the underlying societal qualities and features of Islam, such as commitment to the established cause, justice, equality, and mutual understanding and cooperation, have also been manifested as early as during the exercise of determining the site of the first urban component in the city of Madinah, i.e., the Prophet’s mosque, and during the marking out of its boundaries. At the earmarked location of the mosque there was a walled piece of land that belonged to some people from the Banu al-Najjar clan. The Prophet (pbuh) sent to them and asked them to suggest to him the price of the land. They replied: “No! By Allah! We do not demand its price except from Allah.”

The Prophet (pbuh) accepted the offer and the occurrence typified as well as inaugurated, so to speak, a new phase of the unreserved keenness of the first Muslims to sacrifice whatever they possessed for the cause of strengthening Islam and the Muslim community. Additionally, the mosque proper was about to expand into an area used for drying dates which belonged to two youths, both orphans, named Sahl and Suhayl. The Prophet (pbuh) asked them too to suggest to him the price of the place. However, when they said that they demand no price for it, the Prophet (pbuh) insisted that they tell the price, since they were orphans and possessed little. Eventually, he paid them ten golden dinars. The money was Abu Bakr’s.

To Be Continued

Rights group Amnesty International has released satellite images which it says show an “orchestrated campaign”to burn Rohingya villages in western Myanmar.

Amnesty said this was evidence security forces were trying to push the minority Muslim group out of the country.

The army says it is fighting militants and denies targeting civilians.

Some 389,000 Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh since violence began last month. They have long been persecuted in Myanmar as “illegal immigrants”.

At least 30% of Rohingya villages in Rakhine state are now empty, the government says.

They have lived in the state in Myanmar, also known as Burma,

for generations but are denied citizenship.

Myanmar has faced international condemnation over the crisis.

On Thursday US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Myanmar’s democracy was facing a “defining moment”.

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The general public should please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as JEMOH MURIANA, now wish to be known and addressed as JIMOH MURAINA OLAIYA. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS LILLIAN BASSEY, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS LILIAN EKUBAEDI. All former documents remain valid.

The general public should please take note.

CORRECTION OF NAME I ABDULGANIYU AZEEZ ALMISKINU, my name was ǁƌŽŶŐůLJ ǁƌŝƩĞŶ ĂƐ h>' E/zh AZEEZ instead of ABDULGANIYU AZEEZ ALMISKINU . All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

LOSS OF DOCUMENT This is to inform the general public ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ůŽƐƐ ŽĨ >ĞƩĞƌ ŽĨ ŽīĞƌ ŝƐƐƵĞĚ ďLJ Federal Housing Authority (FHA) and other related documents belonging to MR NATHANIEL OLATUNJI DADA. Got ŵŝƐƐŝŶŐ ŽŶ ϭϱƚŚ ƵŐƵƐƚ ϮϬϭϳ͘ ůů ĞīŽƌƚ made to trace the missing documents ƉƌŽǀĞĚ ĂďŽƌƟǀĞ͘ & Z > ,Kh^/E' AUTHORITY (FHA) and the general public should please take note.

48

T H I S D AY FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

49

˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

PAGE FORTY-NINE SOLDIERS TO WITHDRAW FROM ABIA STREETS TODAY, SAYS IKPEAZU, ARMY DIFFERS he imposed on Aba, which was extended to Friday, Ikpeazu advised residents “to fully observe the curfew in the city and ensure that they cooperate with the security forces to maintain peace and order”.

“I swore to protect the lives and property of all Abians and residents and that I must do. I therefore call on all to support our efforts at making sure that lasting peace prevails in our dear state,” he said.

Python Dance to Go Ahead However, the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig. Gen. Sani Usman, in a statement late last night, said Ikpeazu’s statement on the withdrawal of troops from Aba and Umuahia today was not true.

He said: “The attention of the Nigerian Army has been drawn to some stories in the media that it is withdrawing its troops from Exercise Egwu Eke II (Python Dance II), crediting such information to the Abia State governor and the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 82 Division Nigerian Army.

“This is not true. The Nigerian Army wishes to enjoin members of the public to disregards such rumours.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the Abia State governor in his speech stated that ‘there will be gradual withdrawal of soldiers on the streets of Aba and Umuahia from tomorrow’.”

Usman insisted that this should not be misconstrued as withdrawal of troops earmarked for the military exercise, insisting that the GOC 82 Division had said no such thing.

“Consequently, we wish to state that Exercise Egwu Eke II is commencing tomorrow as scheduled. Commanders have been instructed to ensure that all hands are on deck to take the exercise to its logical completion.

“We wish to state further that the successful completion of the exercise will dovetail into the various states’ security outfits till the end of this year.

“Members of the public, especially in the areas where the exercise will take place, are please enjoined to go about their lawful business.

“We wish to also state that we would not allow any individual or group to jeopardise the conduct of the field training exercise through unlawful or criminal activities,” he said.

Usman warned hoodlums and criminal elements to be law-abiding and not cause any breach of peace.

“We hereby reiterate that our troops would conduct themselves in the best professional manner, abide by the rules of engagement and code of conduct in line with requirements of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“Any act of indiscipline by any of our personnel will be decisively dealt with. While we enjoin all Nigerians to go about their normal business, the Nigerian Army urges all to support the troops as they carry out their constitutional duties and make Exercise Egwu Eke II a success,” Usman said.

Six Persons Killed in Abia The army’s statement came on the heels of continuing bloody clashes in Abia, where four person suspected to be members of IPOB were reportedly killed, following the heavy gunfire that broke out around Kanu’s house.

The junior brother of the IPOB leader, popularly known as Fine Boy, gave the casualty figure to journalists after the smoke cleared, adding that many were wounded, while15 persons were arrested by the soldiers.

He also added that the dog belonging to his father was also gunned down by the soldiers during the operation.

It was believed that the troops had made an attempt to arrest Kanu, whose whereabouts were unknown, but encountered some resistance from his followers at the residence, which doubles as his father’s palace. Kanu’s father is the traditional ruler of Afaraukwu, Umuahia in Abia State.

According to Kanu’s brother, the palace was “desecrated” and the award plagues belonging to Eze Israel Kanu, the father of the IPOB leader, were carted away by the troops.

Efforts to reach the army spokesmen in Abia to comment on the operation targeted at Kanu’s home did not yield results.

Similarly, the spokesman of 14 Brigade Ohafia, Major Oyegoke Gbadamosi declined to speak on the issue, while the deputy director, army public relations 82 Division Enugu, Col. Sagir Musa did not pick his call when he was contacted.

THISDAY also called the two lines dedicated to the Python Dance operations in Abia and nobody responded to the call.

The gunfire around the residence of the IPOB leader broke out at about 4.30 p.m., sending people running for their lives.

There was pandemonium with vehicles making abrupt U-turns and horns blaring as people made frantic efforts to escape from the scene of the shootings.

It could not be ascertained what the heavy shooting was all about but an eyewitness fleeing from the area said that soldiers broke into the compound of the IPOB leader and blocked all entry points.

The incident at Kanu’s house occurred after the killing of the two other young men by soldiers in Umuahia yesterday morning.

Eyewitness accounts said the two men, dressed in black and caps to match, were passing by when they were gunned down along Bank road, less then 50 metres to the gate of government house, Umuahia.

The dead bodies were immediately picked up by the soldiers and dumped inside the army vehicle, apparently to conceal the evidence.

The third victim said to be a bank customer was hit in the arm by a stray bullet and was also whisked away by the troops.

By the time members of IPOB raced to the scene of the incident, after getting wind of the killing of their members, the soldiers had left the scene.

When THISDAY visited the scene of the alleged killing, a black cap said to have belonged to one of the victims was still lying on the ground.

The incident, which happened at about 9.30 a.m., led to panic as people started running helter skelter and businesses hurriedly closed.

Banks in the capital city also closed their gates to customers.

A security man at the main branch of FirstBank in Umuahia told THISDAY that “we have closed for the day” when he was asked why customers were not being allowed into the bank.

At the Afaraukwu area of Umuahia where the home of IPOB leader is located, residents had deserted their homes leaving only IPOB members stationed around Kanu’s residence.

In anger, IPOB agitators marched to the residence of the departing state commissioner of police Leye Oyebade who had already packed his luggage and was about to move to the state police command headquarters to hand over to his successor, Anthony Michael Ogbizi.

Oyebade was said to have remonstrated with the IPOB members on the need to maintain peace.

In Aba, hoodlums were reported to have razed the Ariaria police station and attempted to break into three ATMs located in different parts of the city.

Police sources said that the hoodlums made away with some television and air conditioners from the station.

A policeman reportedly lost his life in the incident, but the death could not be confirmed.

The attack on the police station caused panic in the area, as people scampered to safety while heavy gunfire rent the air.

Traders at the Ariaria International market, located opposite the burnt station did not open for business. Roads were also deserted as banks, markets and other business centres shut their doors to customers, even as soldiers and policemen patrolled the streets.

Along the expressway, hoodlums set up bonfires but were quickly removed by policemen and soldiers.

However, the soldiers stationed at the Bata and Osisioma Ngwa junctions appeared to have heeded the directive of the state government and military authorities not to harass innocent residents.

The soldiers yesterday allegedly frog-marched residents who refused to raise their hands while passing through the military checkpoints.

When contacted, the Abia State Police spokesman, DSP Geoffrey Ogbonna, who confirmed the destruction of the Ariaria Police station by suspected hoodlums, stated that the situation was brought under control as security was beefed up in the area.

Army to Probe Rights Violation Reacting to allegations of gross human rights violations and a video, which went viral showing soldiers beating suspected Biafra supporters

with sticks and making them to roll in the mud on Umahia-Aba expressway, the headquarters of 82 Division Nigerian Army said it would investigate the incident A statement issued yesterday

by Col. Musa said the military authorities were aware of the trending video clip and the issue was being investigated in order to ascertain the source and the actors in the clip.

“We do not condone any act of indiscipline in the conduct of our operations and training exercises,” he said, assuring that “any claim of rights violation would be investigated and when confirmed, appropriate disciplinary action would be taken against the erring personnel”.

He pointed out that “our code of conduct and rules of engagement are quite clear and any officer or soldier that infringes on any of such directives, if found guilty, will face full wrath of the military justice system”.

However, the army spokesman stated that the 82 Division was also aware of the planned misinformation and propaganda arrangement by the secessionists Biafra group, IPOB, adding that “they (IPOB) intend to churn out prerecorded video clips aimed at discrediting the Nigerian Army and causing disaffection among the citizens of this country”.

He alleged that IPOB had resorted to using bogus, manipulated and photoshopped photographs as well as video clips.

“The public should be wary of such mischief, scrutinise and report same to the Nigerian Army or any of security agencies.

“The division wishes to reassure the public that it is determined to ensure the safety of lives and property in its area of operational responsibility, particularly the entire South-east geopolitical zone as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Col. Musa said.

Plateau Imposes Curfew Meanwhile, rumours that the Hausa communicty in Jos, Plateau state, were planning a reprisal attack against Nigerians of South-eastern origin led to serious tension in the city and nearly crippled commercial activities throughout yesterday.

Refusing to take any chances, the situation compelled Simon Lalong, the state governor, to impose an indefinite dusk to dawn curfew on the Jos/ Bukuru metropolis.

Shops owned by Igbos in the city centre were kept locked in the morning hours yesterday for fear that they might be attacked and looted by hoodlums.

The tension however gave way in the afternoon, as the shop owners who were hanging around later opened to customers.

But at about 5 p.m., the city was thrown into utter confusion, as traders at Terminus market scampered for safety. It was later gathered that there was a little fracas between some Hausa youths and their Igbo counterparts,

which was quickly nipped in the bud before it could escalate.

A statement by the governor’s Director of Press and Public Affairs, Mr. Emmanuel Samuel Nanle, said: “The governor of Plateau State has expressed great dismay and shock at the sudden build up of tension in Jos metropolis on account of the conduct of some disgruntled elements, who have decided to throw the metropolis into confusion on account of their negative reaction to the agitation by the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) in the South-east.

“Consequently, the governor has directed an immediate imposition of a curfew from dusk to dawn (6 p.m.–6 a.m,) within the Greater Jos–Bukuru metropolis until further notice.

“The deployment of security personnel to all flash points within the metropolis has also been directed to ensure compliance with the curfew order and to avert any further breach of law and order.”

The governor assured the citizens that the security and welfare, as the primary concern of government, was assured.

He enjoined all citizens to go about their business with the assurance that their safety was guaranteed.

He further appealed to all religious and community leaders, neighbourhood vigilantes and law-abiding citizens to ensure that nobody is allowed to take advantage of the unfortunate situation to engage in criminality.

“The governor wishes to restate that Plateau State remains home to all citizens of Nigeria, irrespective of their religion and ethnic extraction or political persuasion. He therefore enjoins all peace loving citizens to ensure that nothing is allowed to upset the hard earned peace in the state,” the statement said.

THISDAY also gathered that Lalong summoned all religious and tribal leaders and all security chiefs in the state to a meeting last night to appraise the situation.

Osinbajo, IG Meet Just as the Plateau governor moved to avert a crisis in his state, the vice-president and IG held a closed-door meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where they resolved to prevail on political leaders to intervene in the security situation in the South-east.

Answering questions from State House correspondents after the meeting, Idris said his meeting with the vice-president dwelt on two issues, viz: the need to provide security across the country which he said would involve the deployment of policemen and the need to mobilise political leaders to intervene in the clashes between soldiers and IPB members.

“The highlight of the meeting with the vicepresident was to obviously ensure that our provision of security in the country is intact. Obviously, one is to deploy policemen across the country.

“Two, we are in touch with the state governments, trying to mobilise the political leadership to be able to intervene where necessary

on how to reduce the tension in the South-east,” he said.

He also said there was no tension ahead of the forthcoming celebration of Nigeria’s 57th independence anniversary on October 1, insisting that the atmosphere was tension free.

“I don’t think there is tension in the country. Which country, this Nigeria? No. Nigeria does not have tension.

At least, you are in Abuja. You have gone around. There is no tension,” he said.

Idris also denied the allegation by the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, that members of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) were involved in a series of kidnappings in the state, describing it as nonsense.

Idris, however, noted that Wike reserves the right to express himself especially as a governor.

MASSOB Leader Speaks In a related development, Ralph Uwazurike, leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) has said that the activities of IPOB were negating the rules of engagement of the Biafra struggle.

Uwazurike expressed the view in Owerri yesterday, adding that the activities of Kanu could only lead to an unplanned war, which was against the Biafra struggle.

He said the interest of the Biafra movement was to secure the interest, lives and property of Igbo people and not to start another war.

Uwazurike said Kanu’s major interest was to destroy the agenda of MASSOB. Uwazurike was reported to have said by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the hallmark of any freedom fighter was to submit to arrest.

“A real freedom fighter submits to arrest but Kanu has told his members to burn down the country if he is rearrested, a true indication that he was paid to destabilise MASSOB,” he said.

Uwazurike blamed the federal government for making Kanu popular, adding that “if the government had ignored Kanu, the situation would not have escalated”.

He attributed Kanu’s popularity to the relevance accorded him by the federal government and called on all Igbo leaders to condemn the activities of IPOB, as it had no agenda.

“The IPOB has no agenda and I advise Igbo leaders to condemn its activities.

“Nnamdi Kanu has no agenda and he is only thriving on the relevance given to him by the government. I recruited him and I know his capacity and he is not a leader.

“I have 25 steps towards actualising Biafra and Kanu does not have even one agenda,” he said.

Uwazurike condemned the attacks on Northerners over the ongoing military exercise in the South-east.

According to him, any attacks on Northerners would be counter-productive, as many Igbos are resident in the North.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017Ëž T H I S D AY

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NEWS

Ă?ĂĄĂ? ĂŽĂ“ĂžĂ™Ăœ Davidson Iriekpen Ă—Ă‹Ă“Ă– davidson.iriekpen@thisdaylive.com, 08111813081

Adeosun: Nigerian Economy Not Structured to Meet Demographic Needs Emma Okonji

The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, has said the Nigerian economy is not structured to meet demographic needs of the various sectors of the economy, insisting that the oil modelbased economy on which the economy was structured, has failed the country, because it never worked.

Adeosun who spoke yesterday on the state of the economy on ARISE Television, a THISDAY Newspaper sister

broadcast network, said since the oil-based economy is not working for the county, what is needed is a medium term strategy that would drive infrastructure development across all sectors of the economy. “We are carrying out a product-based approach and there are growth drivers in the economy like agriculture that we can build upon as a country. We have huge potentials in solid minerals and we have to stop illegal

mining,� she said.

She explained that the customs authority was already working with state governments to stop illegal mining, and that government is committed to keeping the economy on track.

Addressing the issue of recession that almost crippled the Nigerian economy, Adeosun said government knew that recession would not last for long because it was a phase thing that crept

into the economy and must also go away.

She said government has spent so much on infrastructure to drive the economy and that the strategy helped in no small measure in bringing the country out of recession. “Going into recession is something government had regret for, but there are interventions in agriculture and in other sectors of the

economy and government is realistic about the planned 0.55 per cent growth,� minister said, adding that government sees more opportunities in every sector to drive infrastructure.

On the issue of unemployment, the minister said it started long ago, but that what was important for us as a nation is for government to look inwards and proffer solutions to address our

challenges.

According to the minister, “Our growth as a nation has been declining for a number of years and this oil economy model will not work for Nigeria.

Government will continue to build on infrastructure because infrastructure will drive every sector of the economy, including agriculture, to provide more jobs for our youths.�

Resident Doctors Suspend Strike for Two Weeks Senator Iroegbu Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has suspended the industrial action in response to appeal from the federal government for more time to meet its demands.

This decision was taken at the meeting of National Executive Council (NEC) of NARD in Abuja. The meeting lasted from late night on Wednesday to the early hours of yesterday through which it appraised the implementation of its agreement with the government.

The association had embarked on a nationwide indefinite strike to press home a six-point demand.

But on September 6, NARD laid out terms of settlement with the federal government after the two parties met to resolve the crisis.

Addressing journalists on the decision at the NEC meeting, the Chairman of NARD, UCH, Ibadan chapter, Segun Olaopa, said the union suspended its 10-day-old strike for two weeks to monitor the level of federal government’s compliance with the agreement reached.

According to Olaopa, the two weeks period is to afford the doctors enough time to further discuss with the federal government to arrive at final

solutions to the contentious issues.

He however, stressed that the Doctors would resume the strike if the discussion with the government fails.

He said: “The decision was reached following appeals from the federal government that more time should be given to enable them meet the demands of the doctors.�

Speaking further, Olaopa appealed to Nigerians to bear the situation as members of the association were pressing government to improve the healthcare delivery system in the country The President of NARD, Dr. John Onyebueze, in a short statement after suspending the industrial action directed their members to resume work by 8a.m. today. “After due consideration of the efforts by government and progress made in addressing the items on the notice of our ultimatum, and strike, as well as implementing the contents of the re-negotiated MTS, NARD resolved to suspend her 10 days strike, and to reaccess situation in two weeks at our AGM in Abuja. “Accordingly, members are to resume work 8a.m. today (September 15, 2017),� he said.

Ogbizi Takes over as Abia New Police Commissioner The newly-appointed Commissioner of Police for Abia State, Mr. Anthony Ogbizi, assumed duty yesterday, with a call on residents to embark on profitable ventures and ensure peace in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ogbizi took over from Mr. Adeleye Oyebade after a brief handover ceremony at the command’s headquarters in Umuahia.

The new Commissioner of Police condemned the razing of Ariaria Police Station in Aba and expressed his resolve to work hard to make the state safe for all.

Ogbizi warned against clamour for disintegration

of the country, saying there would never be “a republic within a republic.�

Earlier, Oyebade thanked the Inspector-General of Police (IG), Mr Ibrahim Idris, for the opportunity to serve in the state.

The outgoing police commissioner urged men and officers of the command to give the new commissioner their maximum support and cooperation to enable him tackle crimes such as kidnapping, armed robbery and child trafficking.

Ogbizi was recently appointed the new police commissioner for Abia following the posting of new commissioners of police to some states.

98 HEARTY CHEERS

R-L: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode; celebrant, Alhaji Hassan Fasinro; son of the celebrant, Mr. Hebeeb Fasinro; Special Adviser to the Governor on Urban Development, Mrs. Yetunde Onabule; former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Mohammed Salami; Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Tunji Bello; and others during Alhaji Fasinro’s 98th birthday at his Victoria Island residence, Lagos....Wednesday

FG Lost N70bn to Failed Banks Ndubuisi Francis Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The federal government disclosed yesterday that it lost over N70 billion to failed banks.

The Accountant-General of the Federation, Alhaji Ahmed Idris, who made the disclosure yesterday in Abuja said over N70 billion of funds belonging to the government had been lost to banks.

Idris spoke at a presentation on the ‘Challenges of the implementation of the Treasury Single Account in the Nigerian Public Service during a forum organised by

the Bureau of Public Service Reforms.’ He, however, did not provide the identity of the failed banks said the TSA has been used by the government to unify all its accounts by ensuring that all monies belonging to the federal government are kept with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The initiative which took off fully in September 2015, he said, had been complied with by over 900 agencies of government with over 17,000 bank accounts closed while huge sums of money had

been moved from banks to the CBN. Idris who was represented at the event by Deputy Director/Coordinator TSA/e-Collection, Funds Department Mr. Sylva Okolieaboh, said the TSA policy had been able to assist the government to address a lot of impediment affecting the efficiency of public finance. “The cardinal objective of TSA is to facilitate the implementation of federal government cash management policy. “TSA is intended to address

multiple bank accounts of over 17,000, countless dormant accounts with huge balances, inability to determine consolidated cash position of government, borrowing and incurring charges when there are idle balances in Ministries, Departments and Agencies account, delayed remittance of revenue and collections.

Over N70bn of FG funds lost to failed banks The AGF told participants at the event that the government is currently enjoying a lot of benefits from the implementation of the TSA policy.

Obasanjo: Buhari Has Not Disappointed Me Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for his achievements so far, saying the president had not disappointed him and should be encouraged to do more.

He also appealed to leaders and youths in Africa to embrace change to tackle the continent’s challenges besieging it.

The former President said this yesterday, on the CNN global affairs interview programme hosted by Chief International Correspondent, Nima Elbagir.

On Buhari, the former president said: “President Buhari has not disappointed me. Yes, he is fighting corruption, he is fighting an insurgency. We are not there yet and it is not a one

night wonder. With what he has done, we should credit him and encourage him to do more.�

While he called on African youths not to accept the status quo, he said there is need for them to make bitter sacrifices.

On the challenges facing the African continent, he said there is need to change from the status quo.

He said: “There are many

challenges. How do we feed our population that is supposed to double in about a generation from now? How do we provide jobs for them and employment? Now, these are the challenges. It cannot be business as usual. “We cannot sit in the cool and comfort of our past and think that we will be able to bring about change. Change has to come.�

51

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017Ëž T H I S D AY

NEWSXTRA

INEC: Melaye Evading Service of Recall Petition Tobi Soniyi Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has concluded plans to file an application for substituted service after the senator representing Kogi West senatorial  district, Dino Melaye, refused to collect the petition filed against him by people in his senatorial district who wanted him recalled.

Sources at the Federal High Court said the baliff who went with INEC staff to serve Melaye through his lawyer, Mike Ozekhome & Co, were told that the chamber was no longer representing the senator. “They told us to go and serve the letter and the documents on the senator personally,� the source said.

Following the refusal of the chambers to accept the documents, the commission proceeded to the National

Assembly to effect service on Melaye but found his office locked.

The team also went to his house  with a bailiff to serve him but the gate man said he had instructions not to receive anything from anyone.

Frustrated, the commission instructed the legal team to file an application for substituted service today (Friday) at the Federal High Court.

After dismissing Melaye’s application to stop INEC from proceeding with the petition for his recall, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba ordered INEC to serve him again with the petition and the schedule of signatures and the list of petitioners.

He held that the suit was hasty and premature since Melaye failed to exhaust all internal mechanism provided by the 1999 Constitution before rushing to court.

The commission, in

compliance with the court order took the documents packed in three bags, popularly called ‘Ghana must go’ bags to Melaye’s lawyer chambers, his office and his home but was still unable to serve him.

When asked to confirm if the senator was evading service, a staff of the commission, not authorised to speak on the issue said: “Yes. We are surprised that the chambers of Ozhekome which claimed to have filed an appeal against the judgment of the high court

would claim it has ceased to represent the senator. We have no choice other than to apply to court for substituted service. We are doing that tomorrow.�  Melaye filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal,  Abuja, to stop INEC from going further with the process of his recall from the National Assembly.

The Federal High Court  had on September 11, 2017, in a judgment delivered by Justice Dimgba gave INEC the permission to go ahead

with the recall.

Justice Dimgba gave the go-ahead  after dismissing Melaye’s  suit that sought to to stop his recall by INEC following a petition it said it received from the people of Kogi West senatorial district, whom Melaye represents at the upper chamber of the National Assembly.

However, in a notice of appeal dated September 13, 2017 and filed same day by his counsel, Ozekhome, Â the appellant asked the appellate court for an order of perpetual injunction

restraining the first defendant/ respondent or any of its agents from commencing or further continuing with the process or acting on the purported petition presented to it by the purported constituents of the plaintiff.

Melaye, who has expressed dissatisfaction with the judgment of Justice Dimgba, is asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the decision of the lower court on grounds that the court erred in law in taking the decision to allow INEC proceed with the recall process.

APDA Crisis: Court Dismisses Dokpesi’s Suit for Lack of Merit A Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High  Court presided over by  Justice Yusuf Halilu has dismissed the suit instituted

by Chief Raymond Dokpesi against the Advanced Peoples Democratic Alliance  (APDA) for lack of merit and forgery of a purported appointment letter.

Dokpesi had approach the court with claims that he was the one that appointed the party’s National Chairman, Mallam Mohammed Shittu, and Dr Emeka Okengwu during the formation of the party.

He requested the court to affirm him as Board of Trustees (BoT) Chairman and also dissolve the Shittu-led National Working Committee (NWC) and National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party.

Dokpesi equally prayed for all property and correspondences to be submitted to him. Delivering his judgment, Justice Halilu averted that the defendant was elected in January with a resolution submitted to the Independent National Executive Committee (INEC) and the commission has recognised him (Shittu) as such and several correspondences were made

with him.

The judge affirmed that INEC equally cautioned Dokpesi  in a letter addressed to him that the party can not have a BoT until after five years as stipulated by APDA constitution.

Based on the above facts submitted by the defendants (Mallam Mohammed Shittu and Emeka Okengwu) National Chairman and Secretary respectively remain the authentic and recognised leadership of APDA. He added that Dokpesi’s action lacks integrity and has no locus standi to approach the court in the first instance because the party never had BoT. The judge described the purported letter claimed by Dokpesi to have issued to Shitu as an after thought, adding that it lacks credibility. Reacting, Shittu described it as landmark judgment that would strengthen the party and allow it focus on providing a viable opposition and alternative party that Nigerians are yearning for. “This a confirmation of what APDA stand for that we are party of integrity that can not be hijacked by God fathers,�

Shittu said

Okon, C’River First Republic Federal Parliamentarian Passes on An elder statesman and First Republic federal parliamentarian, Chief Bassey Okon, has died in Calabar, Cross River State. He aged 91 Okon represented Calabar Federal Constituency in the then Eastern Region, a constituency that covered the entire present-day Cross River Southern senatorial district. He had a distinguished career as an educationist, technocrat and politician.

He was the first Principal of the mission-owned Duke Town Secondary School, Calabar. He

served at other times as the Vice-Principal of Kings’ College, Lagos, and Principal of the Federal Government College, Port-Harcourt.

Information released by the family in Calabar showed that the late statesman would be honoured with a parliamentary valedictory session by the Cross River State House of Assembly on September 29, 2017, while his remains would be interred on September 30 after a commendation service at the Duke Town Secondary School ground in Calabar.

RECEIVING ROYAL BLESSING

Osun State gubernatorial aspirant ON the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) Hon. Femi Kehinde, receiving royal blessings from the Ooni of Ife, Oba Babatunde Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi,Ojaja II, during the former’s courtesy visit and familiarisation tour to the palace in Ile-Ife....Wednesday

FG Moves to Combat Bloody Clash Between Cholera Outbreak in Borno APC,PDP Members Michael Olugbode Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă“ĂŽĂ&#x;Ihekweazu, however, said the Ă‘Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“ response to cholera has been Claims Four Lives in Benue The federal government yesterday moved needed machineries to Borno State to combat cholera which has affected 2,000 persons in the state and led to the death of 20 persons.

Among those killed were internally displaced persons at a camp in the troubled North-east state.

Addressing journalists after holding a strategic meeting with stakeholders in the health sector in the state and humanitarian organisations, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, lamented that cholera is a “notorious difficult disease� that kills; “if the rights measures and treatment are not taken to save people’s lives.�

Ihekweazu said so far, the disease has killed 20 persons with 2,000 treated in the ongoing epidemic.

He lamented that the water borne disease has also spread to resettlement camps in Dikwa, Jere and Monguno Local Government Areas of the state.

vigorous with the setting up of treatment centres in the three affected council areas and Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (MMC).

He said: “The critical message we have just received, is that the Borno State government has responded vigorously to cholera outbreaks and containments. “Cholera is a notorious difficult disease; it appears simple, but it can kill if you don’t do the right thing. Yes, we have an outbreak, but together we partner the federal and state governments; and the response has been vigorous. “I am confident that we will get on top of this water borne disease that has already claimed the lives of many people.�

On prevention, Ihekweazu said: “The key thing with cholera; is that nobody wants to die. The important thing is to prevent cases, as the prevention methods are fairly easy.�

He added that: “It is clean water. If you have clean water and if you use boiled water and good water to drink; you will not get cholera.

We understand that this is a very difficult thing to do in some of the IDPs camps.�

George Okoh Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹Ă•Ă&#x;ĂœĂŽĂ“ A prolonged inter-party squabble between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party ((PDP) in Ogobia, Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State has claimed four lives, including a former Chairman of the PDP in the state, Major Lawrence Ugbo (rtd).

The former chairman and three others were last Wednesday morning reportedly killed in a bloody conflict between supporters of both parties.

The Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the local government area, Mr. Christopher Ogbleba and his son were also reportedly killed in the crisis.

The crises, according to an eyewitness, was a spill over of the bitter rivalry between a former Otukpo council chairman, Ijachi Udenyi, who is of the APC and  his brother, Benjamin Udenyi, who is a PDP member, which also left several persons with bullet wounds.

According to the eyewitness,

houses and vehicles were razed by the feuding parties while several persons, including women and children, have been rendered homeless just as many had fled the community for fear of being killed. “The bloody crisis broke out in the community after some armed youths from Ugboju allegedly attacked a group of young men who were believed to be loyalists of the former council boss while they were holding a meeting with their supposed leader in the community. “The aggrieved youths beat a retreat and mobilised for a reprisal and the ensuing bloody fight between the two bitter rivals led to the death and injury of many, including the retired military officer who was an APC chieftain and a former state chairman of the PDP,� he said.

Reacting, the Chairman of Otukpo Local Government Area, Mr. George Alli, who in company of security operatives toured the devastated community, expressed shock at the level of destruction in the community.

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NEWSXTRA

NECO Releases Results, Records Marginal Improvement Again, Ekiti tops other states, Zamfara comes last Laleye Dipo Ă“Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜Ă˜Ă‹ The National Examination Council (NECO) yesterday released the results of the senior secondary school certificate examination that was conducted

nationwide and some overseas countries between June and July this year, showing a marginal improvement in results by 1 per cent.

The results showed that 745,053 candidates that sat

Money Cannot Buy Votes in Nigeria Again, Dalung Tells Atiku The Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has said never again will any Nigerian politician win an election in the country by giving money to the electorate.

Dalung said this while speaking with a local tea maker (Mai Shayi) in Jere Town, on his way to the inauguration of the Olam Feed mill on Tuesday in Kaduna.

Dalung speaking in Hausa said: “Buhari’s government is on the right track now and is working towards fulfilling it promises.�

The minister then made a remark that appeared targeted at Nigeria’s former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar.

Sipping and enjoying a buttered bread, Dalung, according to Premium Times, said: “Anybody who thinks he will an election in Nigeria with his money now he should better do a rethink, gone are those days.�

Atiku, a billionaire member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), had accused the present administration of abandoning him despite utilising his support to come to power.

The former vice president is believed to have been one of the major financiers of the APC and lost the party’s presidential primaries to Buhari in the 2015 elections. He is believed to be preparing for the 2019 elections and is seen by many as one of the few who could challenge Buhari in the elections.

Speaking further on his support for Buhari, Dalung, who stayed for over 20 minutes

with the locals, said, “If we talk, they will say we are doing so because we are working with him. Even if we are not working with him we will always tell people the truth. “If Buhari had gotten to power 10 years ago, I swear to you many countries will have been copying from us in terms of development. Only God knows best. Had it been it wasn’t Buhari that is the president of Nigeria now, the country would have been in serious crisis. Things are getting back to normal. The state of the country’s economy is getting over now. This road Abuja to Kano will soon get full rehabilitation. “On the Issue of farming, we shall have what we will eat.

Anybody who cannot eat that should go to where he can get what he wants and eat. If you do not want to eat Nigerian rice you should go back to Thailand. “For us we will eat what we have here, we will drink Nigerian water, our tailors will sew our clothes and we will wear them. “Buhari is now healthy. He travelled for Sallah to Daura, he arrived there safely. Some people are saying we are covering up the state of the president’s health.�

Not done, the minister added that “If God says he will continue, we will support him; if he says otherwise we will be by him.�

The minister also had a soft criticism for his colleague, the Minister of Women Affairs, Aisha Alhassan, who has made it clear she would support Atiku in 2019 even if President Buhari seeks re-election.

for the examination recorded credit and above pass marks in English and Mathematics, while 947,850 candidates passed with credit and above in five subjects, irrespective of English and Mathematics.

Registrar and chief executive officer of NECO, Prof. Charles Uwakwe, who announced the results said over 1,055,988 candidates registered for the examination, while 1,051472 actually sat for the test, covering a total of 76 subjects.

The registrar disclosed that 50,586 candidates were involved in examination malpractices, adding that 276 schools were involved in “mass cheating� in 34 states.

Uwakwe said six schools had been “derecognised� for their involvement in examination malpractices in addition to 23 supervisors “who aided malpractices in one way or

GET WELL SOON

The Court of Appeal in Abuja yesterday dismissed four of the remaining suits bordering on the authentic leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) between then Chairman, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and then Caretaker Committee Chairman, Senator Ahmed Makarfi. The decision to strike out the suits was sequel to the judgment given in respect of the prayers of the appeals by the Supreme Court.

The Appeal Court had adjourned for judgment in all the suits, Â however,

when the matters came up, counsel to parties after making their submissions urged the Justice Ibrahim Salauwa-led three-man panel, dismissed to strike out the cases because it had become academic.

The applicant counsel all made applications for withdrawal in view of judgment of the Supreme Court in case SC/130/2017 on the PDP leadership tussle on June 12, 2017 which had apparently addressed all the issues in the appeals before the court.

In one of the cases between Markarfi, Ben Obi and four others vs. Biyi

and security agencies in all its examinations.

A review of the results released showed that Ekiti State for the second year running emerged top in the country, beating other states.

Of the 11,539 candidates from schools in Ekiti who sat for the examination, 9,793 passed with five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

The performance of 85 per cent mark put the state above 35 states and candidates of the three neighbouring countries in West Africa.

Edo State, which presented 22,062 candidates for the examination, came second with 18,560 students recording credit and above pass marks in subjects, including English and Mathematics. The performance represented a pass rate of 84.61 per cent.

Bayelsa, with 4,451 candidates

who sat for the examination, recorded five credits and above pass marks in five subjects, including English and Mathematics.

Ogun, with 25,716 candidates, came fourth, recording credit and above pass marks in five subjects and above, including English and Mathematics.

Zamfara State, which presented 26,070 candidates, out of which 26,020 sat for the examination, recorded a 48.45 per cent pass rate to lead from the rear as 12,607 candidates passed five subjects and above, including English and Mathematics.

The 22 candidates that sat for the examination from Togo, Benin, and Equatorial Guinea did not pass in English.

This was traced to fact that students were from francophone countries, however, the tests were conducted in English.

Governor Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State (middle) sharing a moment with a patient when he visited the State Specialist Hospital to inspect new facilities and infrastructure in Damaturu .....yesterday

Appeal Court Strikes out PDP Leadership Tussle Suits Alex Enumah Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË

the other were blacklisted�.

He said the three foreign countries whose citizens took part in the examination were Benin Republic, Equatorial Guinea and Togo.

Uwakwe disclosed that NECO would continue to “put in place a robust plan that will ensure fairness and equity in all our dealings with staff, in line with the present administration’s zero tolerance for corruption and impunity�. “Consequently, we have developed a new NECO ethos, which has remained a guide in all our activities. Simply put, we have zero tolerance for corruption and impunity in all that we do,� he said.

To sustain the already established credibility for which the organisation is known, the registrar said NECO would continue to use both internal and external examination monitors

Poroye, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and seven others, the Appellant Counsel representing Makarfi, Olumide Olujimi, told the court that in view of the judgment of the apex court, the appellant would apply to withdraw its appeal.

Justice Salauwa, responding said: “We are bound by the decision of the Supreme Court which is the highest court in the land, on the principles of stari decisis.  “This appeals having been withdrawn is hereby dismissed with no cost attached.�

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OPERATION PYTHON DANCE II ...

OPERATION PYTHON DANCE II ...

Rights Groups to Monitor Army Operations in S’East Our correspondents The Nigerian human rights community has taken a dim view of the ongoing security situation in the South-eastern part of the country, declaring its readiness to monitor the conduct.

The community also said the police, not the Nigerian Army, have the duty to maintain security anywhere in the country.

The position of the community was expressed in a communique issued at the end of its meeting held in Owerri, capital of Imo State.

The communique was jointly signed by Ndidi Anike, Femi Amele Barbara Maigari and Okechukwu Nwanguma.

The meeting, attended by over 100 representatives of human rights organisations, was essentially in response to the human rights emergency in Imo State as represented by the demolition of the Ekwe Uku Market in Owerri and the forceful eviction of traders from the facility by the administration of Mr. Rochas Okorocha, governor of Imo State.

It, however, coincided with the deployment by the Nigerian Army’s Operation Python Dance II in the five states of the South-east.

While the human rights bodies agree with the objective of the operation, which is the maintenance of security, they, however, stated that such objective is the responsibility of the Nigerian Police Force (NPF).

According to the communique, participants’ attention was drawn to instances of un-redressed extra-judicial killings and harassment by soldiers deployed to the South-east zone, saying such warranted valid suspicions of something sinister.

“Many participants in the Human Rights Community expressed grave fears about the methods and means envisioned in the exercise.

Attention was called to the expressed design for the exercise to ‘transit into real time operations, thereby fulfilling both training and operational objective.’ Questions were raised as to how this dovetails with the primary responsibility of the Nigeria Police Force for law enforcement,” the document stated.

The meeting was also attended by members of community and advocacy groups, including representatives of Keke NAPEP Riders, organized labor, pensioners, retired permanent secretaries, members of the Owerri Community, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Amnesty International and pressure groups such as ‘OurMumuDonDo’ movement and the media. Equally in attendance were representatives of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Imo State Ministry in an observer capacity.

APC Chieftain Warns Military Not to Plunge Nigeria into Fire A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Timi Frank, has said the ongoing military show of force in the Southeast region of the country, in which some youths and Biafra agitators are allegedly being maltreated is capable of putting the country on fire if not checked.

Frank said in as much as military’s show of force is allowed in a peaceful manner, the current approach in the region needs to be checked, urging on President Muhammadu Buhari to consider the political implications of unleashing military on an entire region.

The APC’s Deputy Publicity Secretary in a statement he issued yesterday in Abuja in reaction to a video circulating on the social media where some youths and IPOB members were caught by the military and asked to forcibly swim in a dirty water, said such action is condemnable all over the world.

He warned that the ongoing military action in the region was capable of sabotaging the good intention of APC government and therefore portray the current administration as a military government.

While calling on Nigerians, especially leaders across board irrespective of political differences to speak out against what he described as inhuman treatment of Nigerians, he said: “today it may be the Igbos but tomorrow may be the Ijaws or Yorubas or any other region, by then there may be nobody to speak out. This incident is a total disgrace and embarrassment to the Nigerian government,” he said.

IPC Condemns Army Invasion of Abia State NUJ Secretariat The International Press Centre has condemned the recent invasion of Abia State secretariat of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ)

by Nigerian soldiers of Operation Python Dance on September 12, 2017.

According to media report, “the military personnel reportedly beat up journalists at sight and destroyed their working tools, furniture, documents and other property yet to be quantified.”

The Director of IPC, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, in a statement described the unprovoked attack as shameful and a clampdown on democracy as the list of attacked journalists recently seems to grow daily with the worrisome trend becoming more condemnable.

“If the military wants to exercise its authority and strength it should be channeled into assisting the media to make progress in a democratic era and not victimizing the media professionals,” Arogundade said.

IPC therefore called on the Chief of Defence Staff and Chief of Army Staff to thoroughly probe the incident so that all the personnel involved would be made to face the law.

L-R: National Coordinator, Proactive Gender initiative, Mrs. Eshter Uzoma; Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) in Charge of ICT. Mr, Foluso Adebanjo; Executive Director, Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, Mr. Clemet Nwankwo; and Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, during the Situation Room Dialogue Session with IG in Abuja....yesterday

PDP Decries Alleged Torture of Civilians by Military The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has expressed concern over alleged maltreatment of unarmed civilians by the Nigerian military deplored in some areas of the South-east part of the country.

The party in a statement issued yesterday by the Head of its Publicity Division, Chiinwe Nnorom, said it was appalled by the emergence of a video clip which has gone viral, that shows acts of humiliation against unarmed civilans by members of the Nigerian military.

“That if true, it’s the depth of callousness and a further descent into the gutter by people who are paid to protect life, property as well as the country’s territorial integrity.

“The PDP believes that human life is sacrosanct and must be treated as such by all and sundry; the right to life and liberty as enshrined in our constitution and other international conventions must therefore not only be respected and protected, but must be seen to be so,” the party said

Chidoka Insists Igbo Leaders Should Take Blame for South-east Marginalisation

The Osita Chidoka Campaign Organisation insisted that Igbo leaders in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) should take the blame for the escalation of aggressions against the people of the southeast region and the attendant hostilities therefrom Chidoka who is also the governorship candidate of the United Progressive Party (UPP) in the Anambra State governorship election, also urged youths in the southeast not to resort to violence but resist the temptation to visit the sins of the political elite and unscrupulous uniformed men on other harmless Nigerians on the street.

In a statement issued by the Director of Media, Viola Ifeyinwa Okolie yesterday, the campaign organisation told APGA and APC leaders to stop inundating the organisation with lame explanations but go and face the people who they betrayed.

SAN Condemns Attacks on IPOB Members Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Sebastine Hon, has condemned the treatment meted out to members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) by soldiers.

In a statement he issued yesterday, Hon described the video which has gone viral on the Internet, showing most dehumanising treatment of persons suspected to be Biafra apologists, as horrible and horrifying.

According to him, it is unbelievable that the Nigerian Army, once respected globally, would condescend to the level of flogging its hapless captives and compelling them to submerge themselves in thick mud.

He said: ”I didn’t believe my eyes when I first watched the video; and I almost became a psychological wreck when I attempted to watch it again.”

Ekweremadu Condemns Siege, Calls for Calm The Senate Deputy President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has condemned in strong terms the military siege to the South-east geopolitical zone, noting that dialogue and inclusion were best options in resolving the agitation in the region.

Ekweremadu, however, called on the people of the South-east

to remain calm as he and other leaders of the region were engaging the federal government in meaningful discussions to ensure that the South-east Operation Python Dance was called off soonest.

He said: “The military siege to the South-east is uncalled for because there is no prevailing situation in the region to warrant it in the first place. Instead, it is the Python Dance that appears to be creating problems and raising tension in the region. The agitation in the South East at the moment is best resolved by way of dialogue and a sense of inclusion.”

Halt Operation Python Dance Immediately, IPOB, Ezeemo Tell Buhari The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the candidate of the Progressives Peoples Alliance (PPA) in Anambra State governorship poll, Mr. Godwin Ezeemo, have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately halt the Operation Python Dance II in the Southeast as because it is causing unrest in the zone.

IPOB in a statement made available to THISDAY in Awka and signed by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Emma Powerful, stated that anything short of halting the military operation immediately by President Buhari would bring more problems to Nigeria.

The group said: “We reiterate for the record purposes that the ongoing state sponsored genocide in Abia and Rivers States by the Nigerian army must be halted. History is replete with occasional but consistent episodes of pogrom, genocide and mass killings of Biafrans and Christian communities, especially in northern Nigeria.”

“What is more troubling this time is that certain political office holders in the Southeast are comfortable with the idea of inviting the army to Abia State to execute hundreds of young men and women in cold blood simply for asking for their right of self-determination.

“We hold President Buhari, Brig-General Tukur Buratai and Ikepeazu majorly responsible for the cold blooded executions going on now in and around Abia State at this trying time. Humanity must as a duty, take cognizance of the raw incontrovertible evidence of these atrocities already in public domain. Buhari must halt this operation now.”

Falana Condemns Army’s Invasion of Kanu’s House Human rights activist and lawyer, Femi Falana, yesterday, faulted the deployment of armed troops to Abia State and the house arrest of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mr. Nnamdi Kanu, actions which he described as “unconstitutional and illegal.”

Falana noted that since there was no insurrection in Abia State which the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) could not contain, the deployment of the army to the region by the Presidency cannot be justified in law.

“Although the president is empowered by virtue of section 217(2) of the Constitution to deploy the armed forces for the ‘suppression of insurrection and acting in aid of civil authorities to restore law order’ he cannot exercise the power until there is an insurrection or civil disturbance which cannot be contained by the police,” Falana said in a statement released yesterday.

“Neither the Constitution nor the Armed Forces Act Cap A20 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 has empowered the Nigeria Army to arrest any citizen who is not subject to service law,” he said.

Mr. Falana cited the case of Yussuf v Obasanjo (2005) 18 NWLR (Pt 956) 96 the Court of Appeal, which held that “It is up to the police to protect our nascent democracy and not the military, otherwise the democracy might be wittingly or unwittingly militarized. This is not what the citizenry bargained for in wrestling power from the military in 1999. Conscious step or steps should be taken to civilianize the polity to ensure the survival and sustenance of democracy.”

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OPERATION PYTHON DANCE II ...

Court Remands 30 IPOB Supporters in Prison Chief Magistrate’s Court sitting in Port Harcourt has remanded 30 suspected supporters of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the Port Harcourt Maximum Prison.

This followed the arraignment of the IPOB supporters by the police before Chief Magistrate Amadi Nna-Amadi, yesterday.

The IPOB supporters were arrested by the police following a violence that broke out at the Oyigbo area of the state on Tuesday and Wednesday wherein a Police Sergeant was killed and another injured while shops and properties were destroyed.

Nine of the suspects, who were arrested on Wednesday in connection with the killing of the Police officer, were arraigned under suit number PMC/1935C/2017 on charges bordering on murder, while the 21 arrested on Tuesday, were charged in suit number PMC/1938C/2017, with treasonable felony and unlawful assembly.

The charges were not read to the accused and no plea was taken due to the nature of the charges.

In his ruling, the presiding Magistrate, Chief Magistrate Amadi Nna-Amadi, held that pursuant to section 300 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, Rivers State, the court has remand powers.

He also stated that the court lacked jurisdiction to try the matter. He, therefore, remanded the accused persons in prison custody and ordered the court registrar to remit the file to the DPP for legal advice.

The matter is adjourned sine die.

Meanwhile, the prosecution has promised to ensure speedy trial of the matter. DSP George, who spoke with newsmen shortly after the court session, said they will comply with the law to ensure that justice is done on the matter.

Sultan Urges Elder Statesmen to Call Youths to Order Following the fracas between soldiers and the members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in the South-east, Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, yesterday called on elder statesmen and traditional leaders to call their youths to order for peace to reign in the country.

In a statement signed by the Secretary of the Sultanate Council, Umar Faruk Ladan, made available to journalists in Sokoto , stressed the need for elder statesmen and traditional leaders to educate the youths on the need for peaceful coexistence in their respective geopolitical zones According to the statement, the acts of nefarious individuals will not be allowed to throw the country into anarchy, hence the need for elders to call their youths to order.

“The acts of few bad ones among us cannot be left to tear the country apart. “ Therefore, those bad ones should be called to order by their elders and community leaders to stop such negative actions,” the statement read.

It called on all Nigerians to live in peace with one another irrespective of tribe, ethnic and regional differences.

The statement said Nigeria would continue to remain one nation with a common goal of purposeful development.

Siege on South-east Ill-advised Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in the forthcoming governorship election in Anambra State, Chief Nze Valentine Onwuka, has condemned military operation in Abia State, describing it as ill-advised and preposterous.

In a statement made available to journalists in Lagos yesterday, Onwuka also blamed the South-east governors for their leadership failure which gave birth to the struggle for the realisation of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

According to the gubernatorial candidate, “If there is a legal instrument ordering the arrest of Nnamdi Kanu or any other individual, the federal government should deploy the police that have the mandate as the institution charged with the responsibility to handle internal issues not the military.

“I believe that this siege on the Southeast is ill advised and preposterous.”

Otti Condemns Confrontational Strategy of FG The 2015 APGA Abia governorship candidate Mr. Alex Otti, has called on the federal government not to mishandle the ongoing misunderstanding between troops of the Operation Python Dance deployed to Abia State and members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) for the situation does not degenerate into a full blown arm confrontation that could lead to lasting insecurity and possible loss of innocent lives.

Otti believes that the provocative and confrontational strategy adopted by the federal government was ill-advised and outdated, especially when the option of dialogue had not been explored to the fullest, insisting that peaceful agitation by citizens is not a crime anywhere in the world, and is usually resolved through dialogue.

Otti unequivocally condemned the violence meted out against innocent and armless citizens of the state, especially members of the NUJ who are regarded all over the world as the conscience of the society, and who were merely discharging their lawful duties.

Operation Python Dance: Ijaw Youths Calls For Dialogue The umbrella body of Ijaw youths, Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) after reviewing the tension in the South-eastern states in the past few days, yesterday advocated that dialogue was the only way out of the conflict between soldiers and members of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB).

It therefore advised the federal government to immediately order the withdrawal of military personnel from the region and embark on meaningful peaceful approach in resolving the issue at hand.

According to a statement signed by its President, Eric Omare, “IYC worldwide says that dialogue is the way out of the on-going conflict between soldiers and members of the Independent People of Biafra (IPOB) in Umuahia, Abia State, and other parts of the South east.

“The deployment of soldiers would only succeed in escalating the already tensed situation in the South- eastern part of the country. The federal government should learn from experience from other parts of the country where unnecessary military application has led to radicalisation of youths and escalation of the conflicts as evidenced in the Niger Delta region,” it added.

Buhari Urged to Send Python Back to Forest Despite assurance by the Governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, that soldiers would vacate the streets of Umuahia and Aba, concerned groups and individuals are insisting of total withdrawal of troops from Abia and the cancellation of operation ‘python dance’.

Addressing a news conference yesterday in Umuahia, a Constitutional lawyer and human rights activist, Anthony Agbazuere, urged President Muhammadu Buhari and the military high command to stop the ongoing python dance operation and “send the python back to the forest”.

He said in situation like this, men of good conscience should not sit on the fence while “the lives and property of Abia citizens are being endangered and the peace in the state threatened”.

“I therefore call on the federal government to immediately withdraw the soldiers involved in the so called operation python dance. The python should be sent back to the forest,” he said.

The constitutional lawyer stated that calling off the military operation would surely restore normalcy and allow the Southeast governors round off their dialogue with the IPOB leadership since it is operation python dance that compromised the security of Abia State.

NEWSXTRA

Sagay: Senate is a Merciless, Ruthless Organisation Peter Uzoho and Solomon Elusoji A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Professor Itse Sagay, has continued his vitriolic war of words with the Senate, describing the upper chamber as “a merciless and ruthless organisation.”

Sagay said this yesterday during an interview with journalists on the sidelines of the Hallmarks of Labour Foundation Reunion Symposium held at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Victoria Island, Lagos.

In recent times, the Professor of Law has been critical of the allowances enjoyed by the senators and House of Representatives members, which according to him, is a “crime against humanity.”

He said the senators were just out to “totally suck out the blood of Nigeria for themselves,” adding that they behave like locusts bent on destroying a fruitful harvest.

Sagay said: “They have no mercy, they have no conscience; they simply want to behave like locust just to finish everything within their environment for themselves. That’s totally unacceptable and I’m not going to relent on this thing.

“Look at the allowance they take, forget the amount. Why would a whole senator collect

money for his wardrobe? Is he naked? Does a labourer, who is taking just 18,000 a month get it? He’s the one who needs the money for wardrobe allowance. But these opulent, rich, super-rich people are still collecting from you and I to cloth themselves; they’re collecting money from you and I to buy newspapers; they said they’re suffering hardship by working inside chambers that are fully air-conditioned with luxurious cushions, with people serving them left, right and centre, with food and drinks available.”

Sagay maintained that the loots that constitute allowance, which he said were not taxable, can be distributed among the poor and not the “richest, most opulent senators”, who he said continue to suck the country dry with “excuses and fraudulent claims.”

“If you ask them what is their income they will tell you they’re earning salary which is taxable, which is very little - about one to two million a month,” he stressed. “They will never talk about those allowances which bring their income into tens of millions. We haven’t come near what senators and House of Representatives people are really taking. We are talking about allowances; there are many other secret things that they are taking that have not been exposed. If you go to that gentle man who was suspended from the House of Representatives last year

(referring to Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin), he has a huge story to tell of the billions that nobody knows about that they’re collecting. So there will be no rest until there is justice.”

Also speaking, former Minister of Petroleum, Professor Philip Asiodu, who delivered a paper on “Positioning Education in Nigeria for Peace and Development,” suggested the formulation of a ‘National vision and Agenda for 2040.’

Asiodu explained that it was critically important to elaborate the vision now to enable the leader mobilise the broad masses of the people to move forward to progress, unity and greatness.

He pointed out that the essential element in the vision 2040 would include: National Economic Perspective Plan 2020-2040; Adoption and Implementation of all the Aspects of Good Governance; Necessary Urgent Amendment of the 1999 Constitution; and Universal Compulsory Good Quality Education for all Citizens up to the age of 18 years.

Other components of the vision, according to him were; maintenance of Nigeria as a secular State and religious freedom for the individual; a language policy to promote national integration; eradication of corruption in all facets of national life and adoption of a realistic personal income policy, among others.

Morocco’s Admittance into ECOWAS will Kill Our Productive Sector, MAN Warns FG Jonathan Eze Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has vehemently opposed the admission of Morocco into the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) union.

The association warned the federal government against supporting such a notion at its 45th Annual General Meeting (AGM), held in Lagos, revealing that it will have a disastrous effect on the nation’s manufacturers.

Speaking through its President, Frank Udemba Jacobs at the AGM, MAN, said admission of Morocco into ECOWAS would be equivalent to signing the EPA through the back door.

“We therefore urge the federal government to vehemently oppose the move as it would spell doom to the productive sector of the economy.”

He further explained that: “We are aware that Morocco and European Union (EU) have trade agreement, which means if they become part of ECOWAS, products that come into Morocco from EU will end up in Nigeria, after all Nigeria is the biggest market among all these countries in the ECOWAS, so we are vehemently oppose to Morocco being admitted into ECOWAS, it will really affect us badly, so we are telling our Government not to allow them become part of

ECOWAS because it will badly affect the productive sector of our economy…come to think of it, why should they be part of ECOWAS? They are too far, ECOWAS is Economic States of West Africa, Morocco is not part of West Africa and they shouldn’t be part of ECOWAS” While lauding the FG for the introduction of some policies which have stimulated the economy, MAN appealed that there are still three key challenges that have to be adequately addressed for the nation’s productive sector to boom.

The three major challenges, according to him are inadequate and unstable power, nonavailability of foreign exchange for the importation of essential manufacturing inputs and the unrestrained high interest rates.

He said with the prevailing double-digit interest rates, the Nigerian economy will continue to suffer decline.

“Therefore we recommend, as the Association has done in the past and always, a single-digit interest rate.”

Also on the Morocco joining the ECOWAS, it would be recalled that the Association of Retired Career Ambassadors of Nigeria (ARCAN) recently called on the Nigerian government to resist any attempt by other member countries of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to admit Morocco into the regional body.

Noting that Morocco, by reason of its geographical location, does not qualify to be admitted into the regional organisation, the association, through its founding chairman and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Ignatius C. Olisemeka, however warned that Morocco’s motive was political and aimed at whittling down the strength of Nigeria for her role in the admission of Western Sahara into the then Organisation of African Unity (OAU).

The association however wondered why the Federal Government has so far, not engaged in a vigorous campaign against Morocco’s move, stressing that the government owes Nigerians an explanation.

According to ARCAN, the admission of Morocco in principle, if true, would have been one of the most humiliating and lowest points in Nigeria’s foreign policy since independence.

The association further argued that admitting Morocco into the regional body would mark the end of ECOWAS, as a new name would be introduced to accommodate countries beyond the border of West Africa.

Rather than seek to destabilse ECOWAS, ARCAN has called on Morocco to go back to the regional organisation it originally belonged and reconcile its difference with its brother nations.

55

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2017

FRIDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

F I FA R A N K I N G S

Nigeria Drops Six Places Despite Massive Win against Cameroon Germany upstages Brazil to become number one football nation Duro Ikhazuagbe Nigeria’s Super Eagles dropped six places to 44 spot in the September FIFA rankings released yesterday despite the heavy defeat handed out to Cameroon in Uyo and one-all draw in Yaounde four days later in the World Cup 2018 qualifiers.

The three-time African champions however swapped places with the Indomitable Lions in the continental grading with Nigeria now in the fifth position.

It appears the victory recorded by the home-based Eagles against Benin Republic in the subregional WAFU Cup of Nations qualifiers count little in the final grading for September. Nigeria’s total point haul depreciated from 716 to 696.

Nigeria’s only rival to next year’s World Cup, the Chipolopolo of Zambia, are still a lowly 78th in the world and 16th in Africa.

Both teams have an October 7 date in Uyo that may determine which country grabs the Group B ticket to Russia 2018.

Nigeria with 10 points from four matches is three points ahead of second-placed Zambia.

At the top of African rankings is the Pharaohs of Egypt with

fellow north Africans Tunisia in the second spot. Senegal is fourth with Burkina Faso (7th), Ghana (8th), Cote d’ Ivoire (9th) and Morocco completing the Top Ten power houses of African football.

Globally, World champions Germany pushed Brazil back into second place to return to the top of the FIFA rankings.

Germany’s 2-1 win away to the Czech Republic and their 6-0 drubbing of Norway in the World Cup qualifiers lifted them over the already-qualified Brazil, who dropped points in a draw away to Colombia.

European champions Portugal climbed three places to third – even though they are second in their World Cup qualifying group behind Switzerland.

In another surprise, Argentina is fourth in the rankings despite struggling to qualify for the World Cup after drawing its last two games - away to Uruguay and at home to Venezuela.

The rankings made disappointing reading for Asia with only three sides in the top 50 - Iran, Japan and Australia.

The next FIFA rankings will be announced on October 16 and used to determine the seedings in the draw for the four European playoff ties for next year’s World Cup finals in Russia.

G OT V B OX I N G N I G H T 1 2

Injury Forces Joe Boy’s Opponent out of Commonwealth Title Fight South Africa’s Dillon Youle, who is billed to fight Nigeria’s Oto “Joe Boy” Joseph for the Commonwealth Africa Lightweight title at GOtv Boxing Night 12 on 1 October, has pulled out from the fight on account of injury.

According to Natasha Lyon, manager of the South African boxer, Youle suffered an unexpected recurrence of an injury sustained in his last fight while training on Wednesday.

“Dillon had an injury from his last fight that has flared up.

His hand was fractured. While training yesterday, in a sparring session, his injury flared up and the old injury became inflamed,” explained Lyon.

She added that the boxer was eagerly looking forward to the fight and regrets the missed opportunity imposed by the “unforeseen circumstance that is out of our control, unfortunately”.

Flykite Promotions, organisers of the event, said arrangements are being made for an equally good boxer as replacement for Youle.

GOtv Boxing Night 12, which holds at the Indoor Sports of the National Stadium, Lagos, will feature seven bouts, including four international title bouts

The cream of the crop is the African Boxing Union Welterweight title defence between Nigeria’s Stanley “Edo Boy” Eribo, incumbent champion, and Ramadhani Shauri of Tanzania.

Shauri’s compatriot, Juma Fundi, will go up against Nigeria’s Waidi “Skoro” Usman in an international featherweight challenge contest.

In the light welterweight category, Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi of Nigeria will stake his West African Boxing Union title when he faces Ghana’s Bilal Ibrahim.

Also in the Light Welterweight category, rising star, Rilwan “Baby Face” Babatunde, will duel Tombraye “Tornado” Christmas.

The exciting Rilwan “Real One” Oladosu will stake his boxing reputation against Samuel Opaogun, while Kabiru “KB Godson” Towolawi will fight Akeem Adebayo in a National Light Heavyweight challenge.

The boxers are in line to earn a total of N20million in prize monies. The winner of the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Award for the best boxer will go home with N2.5million.

The two runners-up will win N1million and N500,000 respectively.

D’Tigers’ Ike Diogu (2nd left) and his teammates celebrating the semi final qualification at the ongoing 2017 Afrobasket Championships in Tunisia… yesterday

Afrobasket 2017: D’Tigers Defeats Cameroon to Qualify for S’final Femi Solaja with agency reports

Nigeria’s quest to retain the Afrobasket Championships is back on track following D’Tigers’ 106-91 victory against Cameroon in one of the quarterfinal games yesterday in Tunisia.

The Nigerian team produced its best performance against a formidable Cameroonian side also determined to rule the continent in the sport.

The defending champions were never in danger of relinquishing their lead as they did in the group stages against

Democratic Republic of Congo.

Their opponent on several occasions looked like they could come back in the game especially when they reduced it to just five points at the end of the 3rd quarter, but the glory-seeking Nigerians did not relent as they stretch the lead most of the time.

According to reports from www.fiba.com, the game-changing moment came at the start of the 4th quarter when Nigeria went on a 10-0 run that led Cameroon to call for a timeout, but the latter weren’t able to claw their way back.

It was really hard to call who was Nigeria’s best player of the evening as all the players contributed points that earned them the win.

Ike Nwamu was so good that he made 7 of 9 shots he attempted from outside the arc, finishing with 25 points and 7 assists. In short, virtually all those points came in the last quarter.

Ike Diogu led by example for Nigeria, making 28 points and 9 rebounds with 7/12 FG, converting 5/6 of 3-point shots attempted in the game.

Bryant Mbamalu was another big performer for D’Tigers with a tally of 22 points and 4 rebounds.

Followed by Deji Akindele with 13 points and also Ike Iroegbu with the 7 assists that set up his teammates.

The scoreline showed that D’Tigers’ completely dominated, but its looks surprising that Cameroon who had four players with double digits still lost.

Beniot Mbala had a game high 32 points and 10 rebounds, while Felix Bogmis had 25 points and Adala Moto contributing a further 20 points.

Ligue 1: Neymar to Start as PSG, Lyon Clash Live on StarTimes The French Ligue 1 season’s encounter between Paris Saint Germain (PSG) and Olympic Lyon on Sunday, September 17 at the Parc des Princes Stadium promises to be full of fireworks.

StarTimes has concluded arrangement to bring the match live to its sports loving subscribers and fans on its ST Sports Life channel.

The PSG team, currently sitting on top of the table with 15 points from five matches will

be home to Lyon with 11 points from equally five matches and currently third on the table. PSG will also meet with Montpelier on September 23rd.

Football analysts are expecting an explosive encounter between both sides, but bearing in mind that PSG has not lost to Lyon in Paris in the last 10 years. The last three games either home or away have seen three or more goals.

According to the Brand and Marketing Director, StarTimes, Mr.

Qasim Elegbede, StarTimes is ever committed to deliver quality sporting content to its subscribers on all Sport channels.

“StarTimes acquired the broadcast rights of these sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup in over 48 territories in Africa, and other league games such as the Serie A, Bundesliga, French Ligue 1, Chinese Super League and Eredivisie to ensure that our subscribers across the globe are satisfied”, Elegbede said.

StarTimes is the leading digitalTV operator in Africa, covering the entire continent’s population with a massive distribution network of 200 branded halls, 3,000 convenience stores and 5,000 distributors.

The pay TV Company also owns a featured content platform, with 480 authorised channels consisting of news, movies, series, sports, entertainment, children’s programmes, fashion and religion.

Kuker Mini Tennis Now to Hold Thrice a Year make it a three times a year well in this changing world teams participated in the two-

Following the success of the maiden edition of the Kuker Farm sponsored Mini Cadet Table Tennis Championship the competition will subsequently be held thrice a year.

Sponsor of the competition, Kunle Soname, expressed his happiness at the level of competition.

“I am really impressed with the level of competitive spirit among the kids which gives me the impetus to subsequently

competition. I urge the kids to avail themselves the opportunity offered by this competition to develop their God given talents,” observed Soname whose interests cuts across other sports.

He however counseled the kids to ensure they combine sports with education.

“Above all, they must combine sports with academic excellence. You cannot function

without sound education.

Indeed, sports and education play complimentary roles in building future leaders,” stressed Soname.

The competition was categorised into three segments of ages 7-9 years, 10-12 years and 13-15 years in both the male and female categories.

Alakoro Academy, Indian School Team, Ikorodu Local Government and Lagos Island

day competition held at the knock-up Hall of the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.

Teams from Mushin, Rowe Park Boys and New Era Teams also took part in the competition. Certificates, bats, t-shirts and trophies were given to the participants at the end of the competition.

WAFU CUP Nigeria 0-0 Mali

Friday, September 15, 2017

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Price: N250

MISSILE Sagay to Senators “They exist for themselves and they don’t care what happens to Nigerians. I maintain my position. That is why Obasanjo (the former president) called them un-armed robbers and they could not reply because they know it is the truth.”

– Chairman, Presidential Action Committee on Anti-corruption (PACAC), Prof., Itse Sagay maintaining his earlier position on National Assembly members’ profligacy in the midst of glaring poverty and want in the society.

SHAKAMOMODU THIS REPUBLIC

shaka.momodu@thisdaylive.com

0811 266 1654

Now the Joke’s on You S

ometimes, I want to laugh at our people and say, it serves you right. Some other times, I just want to “siddon look”, apologies to our Cicero, the late Chief Bola Ige. And yet more often than not, my first instinct when they are complaining about the “strange” goings-on in government is to say, some of us told you so. You see, a child who fails to heed the warnings of elders to stay away from fire, will run away from ashes after suffering the consequences of fire.

The 2015 presidential election has come and gone but the lies, tone, texture and frenzy of the campaign will stay with us for a long time to come. It was not so much about the issues of governance or the vision and ideas of the contestants, but much more about the full-blown demagoguery and even debauchery on display by forces determined to wrest power at all costs. Many simply lost their ability to reason normally and behaved like addicts high on opiate. They became jellies and zombies of a feudal hegemony disguised as “change”.

Otherwise highly respected intellectuals and people of great standing in society got sucked into a make-belief change; their endorsement helped in no small way to bolster the false narrative of the 2015 campaigns and drove the ordinary people into a frenzied march on a path that has pushed the country rolling towards the edge of a precipice.

Now, we are at the moment of truth; stripped of all pretences and completely disabused of the illusions of a changed Muhammadu Buhari. The truth is, we have never had a president, who by his deliberate actions and inactions sowed the seeds of mistrust; who is so utterly insensitive and so brazenly determined to stoke the fault lines of the delicate balance of this ethnically diverse country like we have now. We have never had a man so clannish at the helm of affairs of this country like we have today, a president who declared that he would not treat those who gave him 97 per cent equally with those who gave him 5 per cent.

The tragedy of it all is that the signs were there from the word go, so was the evidence of his tenure both as a military Head of State and the Chairman of PTF – that Buhari’s history and career is steeped in advancing narrow ethno-religious interests using national public offices - but were waved off as “contrived handicaps” by those who were all too determined to rewrite his past in flattering prose and poetry.

Surprisingly, many people, some of us had previously ascribed historical knowledge of events to, suddenly turned themselves into fanatical spokespersons, purveyors of falsehoods and embellishers of “true lies” and half-truths. Some took a blind leap of fate on a man they knew in their heart of hearts had not changed.

They told us it would be purblind to insist Buhari has not been chastened by the intervening experience and – most critically - by a vastly transformed environment – both localised and global. Now the joke is on those who stood as guarantors for a changed Buhari as his actions since coming to power at every turn have contradicted their claim.

They even told us all his domestic workers were from the South-east; that one of his daughters was married to an Igbo man and that he would celebrate the 2014 Christmas in the South-east with

Soon after the failure of that bill, the Fulani herdsmen as if they were watching the direction the pendulum would swing, unleashed wave after wave of bloody massacres on innocent communities across the country, killing and maiming thousands. Some revisionists and other mischief propagandists even denied it was Fulani herdsmen that were doing the killings despite the clear evidence (talk of exoneration by denial), all in a bid to excuse Buhari’s culpable guilt by his cold indifference and failure to take decisive action against his kinsmen. And as the saying goes in the land of my fathers, “Indifference is always the friend of the enemy.” It emboldens the aggressor to further violate the victim.

According to Wole Soyinka, revisionism is a travesty of history. Strangely, many even alleged that describing the marauding killers, as Fulani herdsmen Buhari was a smear campaign targeted at Buhari because his in-laws as evidence of his detribalised nature. of his Fulani ancestry, and that those guys were not But it was all a pack of lies! Some of us could only Nigerians. Really? Up till today, no one has given shout ourselves hoarse and look on helplessly as us any rational explanation for Buhari’s inaction too many people signed the “suicide pact” that has against the “foreign” herdsmen. When Buhari, under pressure from the public finally acted after months of doomed nation building.

I know someone who swore by the heavens that silence, it was a feeble, half-hearted response to what Buhari was God-sent to fix Nigeria. That was when had turned into a full-blown national security crisis.

You see, since his ascension to power, Buhari the euphoria was still fresh. Less than two years into Buhari’s 4-year term he started to avoid me. rather than by his conduct, dispel that well-deserved Why? Because he simply ran out of excuses for ethno/religious irredentist toga he earned by his utterances and actions years preceding his rise to the man’s failure.

There is a proverb in the land of my fathers the presidency, or at the minimum, disguised his which says you do not need a lamp at night to agenda of righting the perceived wrongs done to the identify a person you already know very well in North, has done more to strengthen that appellation the afternoon. But those who should have known by way of appointments, actions and inactions.

He started by filling up the Presidential Villa became willing drummers for a candidate who represents all the things that divide us as a nation. with people of his ethnic stock. All his personal Since the ascension of Buhari to power, we have aides and nearly all his assistants and special not seen the promised change. Rather, we have advisers are from the North. Take a careful look seen a deliberate and systematic northernisation at the following and you would feel a chill in of government agencies to the alarm of both those your spine: Kabir Daura, son of Mamman Daura, who warned against electing him and some of those Buhari’s personal assistant, Air Commodore N. B. who marched to support him. I had stated in my Bali - Commander, PAF; Nura Rimi - PLO, Abdulkarim first intervention in the Buhari debate, titled, Buhari: Dauda – CPSO, Yau Abdullahi - Chief Detail, Sabiu When Facts Become ‘Contrived’, that he is not the Yusuf - Personal Assistant, Lawal Mato - Snr. Personal right person for the office of president of a modern Assistant, Brigadier General Musa Yusuf, Commander, Nigeria because he would reverse the little progress Guards Brigade, Dr. Suhayb Sanusi Rafindadi made in the quest for nation building. And more CPP, Usman Bashir Abubakar - CSO, Mallam Lawal importantly, that the only reason he wanted to be the Abdullahi Kazaure - State Chief of Protocol, Lt.-Col. president was to regain the power he lost when he Muhammed Lawal Abubakar – Aide-De-Camp.

The headship of the entire security architecture was overthrown in 1985 as well as the overwhelming ambition to right the perceived wrongs done to the of Nigeria is firmly in the hands of one section of North since the democratic experiment began in the country. Who does that in a multi-cultural and 1999. His body language then said it all, but either multi-plural society like ours? Only our “changed” many didn’t understand it, or was misread by an President Buhari. It was written in the book of overexcited, foolish and gullible public. It didn’t old that a leopard never changes its spot. But those take long for him to eagerly put the agenda of his who were too eager to ditch the wisdom of old mission into practice following his victory in the poll. for the brand new marketing manual of shylock It is instructive that Buhari’s first consideration politicians waved all the danger signals aside and following his victory, even before he was sworn crowned him the new messiah of our time who in was the Grazing Bill. It started with murmurs, would save Nigeria.

Again, take a look at the following out of the whispers, and then a subtle push. Many were in disbelief at the mere thought of it by the president, many lopsided appointments and tell me if this let alone preparing a bill to the National Assembly. man is not an ethno/religious bigot as former Vice Then it was denied, and of course, it soon became President Atiku Abubakar once described him in the clear that it was real after all. Buhari only quietly run-up to the APC presidential primary in 2014: the backed off when faced with a determined pushback. Inspector General of Police, Idris Abubakar, the In that whole drama, it was also quite instructive Director General of the Department of State Security that the president never uttered a word but was Services, Lawal Musa Daura, the Chief of Army working hard behind the scenes to push one of Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Yusuf Buratai, the Chief of Air Staff, Sadiq Abubakar, the National Security the clannish provincial policies dear to his heart.

Adviser, Babagana Monguno, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, the Minister of Defence, Mansur Mohammed Dan Ali, the Minister for Interior , Abdulrahman Dambazau, the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, Hammmed Ibrahim Ali, the Comptroller-General of Immigration, Mohammed Babande, the Controller-General of Prisons, Ja’afaru Ahmed. It is bad enough that they are all from the North, it is even worse that they are all Muslims.

The recent lopsided recruitment into the Department of State Services (DSS) is another direct affront to the delicate balance of Nigeria’s unity. It was reported that 51 officers were picked from Katsina State, the president’s own state, while Akwa Ibom and Lagos produced only 5 and 7 respectively.

As if the huge outcry that skewed exercise generated was not enough, the just concluded management reshuffle in the state oil company (NNPC) has shown the clear danger Buhari poses to Nigeria’s unity. It is frightening that he doesn’t care about the implications of his actions and is therefore carrying on despite protestations. For goodness’ sake, how can one justify the following appointments?

Malami Shehu - MD Port Harcourt Refining Company, Muhammed Abah - MD Warri Refinery, Umar Ajiya - MD NPMC, Bala Wunti - GGM CP&S, Usman Yusuf - GMD STA. (Tech), AhmaduKatagum - GGM Shipping (Downstream), Kallamu Abdullahi - GGM Renewable Energy Division, Shaibu Musa - MD NNPC Medical Services Limited; Ibrahim Birma - GGM Governance, Risk & Compliance Division; Farouk Ahmed - MD Product Mkg - Retiring.

Others are Adewale Ladenegan - MD Kaduna Refinery, Adeyemi Adetunji - MD NNPC Retail, Bola Afolabi - GGM Research & Development, Roland Ewubare - Group General Manager 2, Diepriye Tariah - MD of IDSL... Conspicuously absent from the list is any name of a senior management person from the South-east. Even the South-west and the South-south are scarcely represented.

Ohanaeze, in a statement by its President-General, John Nwodo aptly captures Buhari’s disdain and modus operandi to governance: “As long as President Buhari continues to ‘live out his speech abroad’ that his government will favour those who voted 97% for him against those who voted 5% for him, so long will the dissatisfaction and unrest in our polity subsist.

“There is no oil well anywhere in Northern Nigeria. Four of the five states in the South-east have proven oil resources some of which provide our nation’s revenue, yet our people are not found fit to be adequately represented in a key corporate institution like the NNPC.” Now, just imagine for one second that it was former President Goodluck Jonathan who appointed people of his own ethnic stock into strategic national positions to the exclusion of a section of the country, like Buhari has done; all hell would have broken loose by now.

Wounds take a long time to heal. Nigeria will need a lot of healing from the damage done to it by Buhari long after he has left office. Those clamouring for him to remain in power beyond 2019 disparage and trivialise the harm he has done to our individual and collective psyches in our quest for nation-building policies and programmes.

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